Super Smash Bros Brawl - The Worlds Connections
by TheAuraWolf
Summary: John, an ordinary fifteen year old kid, receives what he thought was a regular DS as a present. He quickly finds out it's actually a powerful device made by Master Hand, and dark forces want to use it for catastrophic purposes. Seeking refuge with the Smashers, John must now join their ranks, as they protect each other from those who constantly hunt him down.
1. Chapter I:Prologue

A/N: Yes, this is not Zootopia. Welcome to Super Smash Bros Brawl: Worlds Apart. It's a new story. I followed Super Smash Bros since Brawl, so I figured: What if i made a story about a boy; me! Don't worry, I do have flaws in this story. I do end up meeting these characters in an unsuspected way. So I came up with this.

And here it is, I hope you enjoy the story! Bye!

* * *

 _ **Chapter 1: Prologue**_

After the incident known as the Subspace Emissary, everything was back to normal for everyone. The fighters stayed within the confines of the enormous Smash Mansion to participate in grand tournaments. Ganondorf, Bowser, and King Dedede left the Mansion because they weren't interested in the tournament. Wolf stayed because he wanted to kick Fox's ass into submission. The aforementioned grumpy vulpine sat far away from everyone with an annoyed look because he just lost to Wolf, who just kept teasing and mocking him.

"Are you okay, Fox?" A young voice asked, Fox looked down he saw a 10 years old Hylian looking at him. Fox sighed. As much as he wanted to tell him to shut up, he can't say that to a little kid.

"No, Toon, I'm not... I lost to Wolf..." Fox replied, annoyed. He could see Wolf smirking from a mile away. Fox shot him a glare. The Hylian sat next to him.

"It's okay. You'll beat him next time!" Toon said. Fox looked at him then chuckled he was right.

"Yeah, you're right. It's not the end of the world." Fox said. He never really knew Toon Link, but all he knew was that he was a good kid. Two hands floated next together.

"Ahem! May I have your attention?" One of the hands said. Everyone looked at his direction. Fox and Toon Link got a little closer to hear what the hand was going to announce.  
"Today, everyone had a good tournament." Fox grunted. He sure didn't enjoy his match.  
"Today, everyone will have a little vacation from the tournament." All of them started muttering to each other. Toon Link noticed a floating object behind the hand.

"Master Hand, what is that behind you?" Toon pointed at the object. Every one looked at what Toon Link was pointing at, and yes, they could see a floating device behind the Hand.

Master Hand moved out of the way so everyone can get a clear view, "This, my friend, is called the The New Dimensional Source; NDS For short. I'm still working on it, so please don't touch it." Master Hand explained. Everyone nodded while the kids eyed it with curiosity.

"What does it do?" A red-capped boy from the town of Onett said. His name was Ness, and he saved his world from an alien named Giygas with only his baseball bat, psychic abilities, and three friends as support.

"Well, As the name says, it's a machine used for travelling into a dimension called the real world." Master Hand explained. Most of the fighters knew about the real world. Several grunted in annoyance.

"Oh yeah, I forgot... We're video game characters to them." Falco commented.

"Maybe we can go to the real world?" A ten year old boy suggested. Master Hand directly disagreed.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no! If the humans of the real world know about us, fan girls would be sure to rape you!"Master Hand said. Everyone gasped, including Wolf.

"I-I'd rather stay here than meet the outside world..." A blue haired prince said. His name was Marth, the prince of a nation known as Altea. With his legendary blade, the Falchion, he defeated the Shadow Dragon Medeus and saved his world. Oh, and despite the fact that he was engaged to a princess named Caeda, he had truckloads of fan girls in the Real World.

"Y-yeah I rather not get my manhood exposed..."Fox muttered with an embarrassed voice. The humans shuddered at the thought.

"For once, pup, I agree with you..." Wolf replied with a frown on his face. Toon Link and the rest of the kids got confused.

"What is rape? "Toon Link asked. Most of them looked at him incredulously. Before anyone could stop him, a certain racer known as Captain Falcon started to explain.

"Well rape means it's a se-" Most of them looked at with wide eyes before he could explain it further. An older Hylian named Link knocked him out with his shield before he could continue.

"Y-you shouldn't explain that to kids!"Link shouted at the knocked-out Captain Falcon. Most of the adults sighed in relief while the kids still looked confused. If the kids ever found out what rape meant, it will surely give them brain damage.

"Look, kid, someone well explain it to you when your older." Wolf explained. Toon Link let out a "Hmm..." while Fox scoffed.

"Huh, what's this? Wolf is concerned?" Fox said with a mocking tone. Wolf glared at him.

"What? Do you want him to have brain damage?" Wolf asked, while still glaring at him.

"No..." Fox said in a low tone.

"Then shut up!" Wolf yelled, then he looked away. Fox shot him an annoyed look before looking away.

"Ahem." Everyone's attention was caught once more by the Hand. "Tomorrow you're all leaving, so prepare for the trip." Everyone nodded and left the area to go to their respective dorms. While Captain Falcon was being dragged away by Lucario.

What they didn't notice was the fact that they were being watched. The figure analyzed the NDS with great curiosity, then smirked. He had a great plan in mind...

* * *

 _ **Dorm Area ~ Fox and Wolf's Room**_

Fox and Wolf shared a room together, which is considered unlucky. Ever since Wolf was invited to the Smash Tournament, there were no other rooms expect for Fox's room. So Master Hand assigned Wolf to Fox's room, which they both disagreed with, but Master Hand threatened to throw them into Cruel Brawl Mode if they didn't accept the idea. Fox nodded with fear. He experienced Cruel Brawl, and for him it was one of the most painful experiences of his life. Wolf scoffed, but agreed anyways even though he didn't know what Cruel Brawl was. Both anthros were packing things in silence.

"So, what's your plan after we leave?" Fox asked. Wolf looked annoyed at him.

"Why do you care?" Wolf asked as he went back to packing.

Fox rolled his eyes."It's just a question! Sheesh!"

As they finished packing. They closed the suitcase by zipping it up. "I didn't even know you cared for kids."

"I'd never hurt a kid, but I don't care about them." Wolf replied in a "don't care" manner.

"Yeah, right you are." Fox said sarcastically before Wolf grunted. Before they could do anything, the alarm on their ceiling began flashing red.

 _ **"Warning! Warning! An intruder has entered the mansion! Please locate the intruder immediately! The building is on lock down."**_

"An intruder is in the mansion?!" Fox asked, startled by the alarm as he stood up while Wolf groaned in annoyance as he lazily stood up.

"When I'm about to have a vacation, this happens?!"Wolf complained. Fox looked at him annoyed.

"Shut up! Let's go! Everyone is probably finding the intruder!" Fox said as he ran out of the room. Wolf shook his head before also running outside. He has to follow the rules. As the two rivals ran across the hallway, they met up with Ness and Lucas, a blonde boy from Ness's world.

"Ness, Lucas! Have you found the intruder?" Fox asked as the four of them stopped running.

"No, we haven't had any luck. You?" Ness asked. Fox shook his head.

"No, we haven't found the intruder in our halls. Where do you think he is?"Fox asked while in thinking position.

"He could be anywhere. It would be faster if we split up searching for the intruder." Ness suggested. Fox nodded in approval.

"Right! You guys check this area. Me and Wolf will check the main areas!" Fox commanded as everyone nodded in approval except Wolf, who just lazily stood there. Everyone ran in the opposite directions, trying their best to find the intruder. Fox and Wolf looked around the dorms' main area such as the lobby and the training room, but found no sight of the intruder.

"The intruder is nowhere in sight... Where would he be?" Fox wondered, which made Wolf roll his eyes.

"If he isn't in the main area of the dorm, then the intruder would be either in the girls' dorm or roaming inside the Mansion hidden. I didn't expect you to be this stupid!" Wolf said in a mocking tone.

"Shut up, Wolf! I'm not in the mood to deal with your attitude right now! Let's just search the Mansion." Fox said while grunting as he left the dorm with Wolf, who grunted too.

The two looked around the main area with still no sight of the intruder, although they managed to meet with Master Hand. "Fox, Wolf! Have you found the intruder yet?" Master Hand asked worriedly with a bit of paranoia on his voice.

"No, we haven't. We searched the whole dorm, but there's still no sight of him." Fox explained.

"This is a problem..."Master Hand said.

"But the only place we haven't searched is..." As if on cue, they heard an explosion came from the room known as the command room/meeting room.

Fox and Master Hand ran to the command room to see the commotion. Wolf also followed, but a little behind. When they arrived, Fox's eyes widened he saw their comrade bruised up. He looked up and saw a figure laying his hand on the NDS. He ran to the figure as he attempted to kick the foe, but the hooded being dodged. Fox took out his blaster by instinct as he aimed his blaster at the hooded figure.

"Who are you?!" Fox demanded. The figure stood stood there silence. "Answer me!" Fox tightened his grip on the blaster, being aware of the hooded figure's movement.

"I don't have time for the likes of you." The hooded figure said with a deep, ominous voice. Fox got surprised by his opponent's speed. The figure quickly ran up to him and grabbed Fox's arms, twisting the blaster off of Fox's hand. He then threw a knee at Fox's stomach as he let out a painful "Oof" as Fox got on one of his knees. Fox was in a tight situation until the hooded figure let go of his arm as he dodged a blaster shot. Fox looked up and saw Wolf pointing his blaster.

"If anyone is gonna kill Fox, It's gonna me!" Wolf proclaimed, pointing his weapon at the hodded figure.

"(Wolf...)" Fox thought.

"Tch! You all are just a waste of time!"The figure said as he swiftly moved to grab the NDS. Wolf focused his fire hoping to intercept him, but the figure dodged all of the projectiles and managed to grab the NDS.

"No! I won't let you take that! You could harm humanity!" Master Hand warned. The hooded figure grunted.

"Like I care for those feeble humans!" The hooded figure retorted. Wolf had a slight idea, hoping Fox would catch it.

"So, what have those feeble humans done to you?" Wolf asked. The mysterious figure gave him a glare, although his eyes (along with the rest of his face) were obscured by his hood.

"Why do you care?!" The hooded figure said with a grunt. Wolf rolled his eyes.

"You're sounding pathetic. You're starting to sound like me." Fox looked at Wolf. What was he doing? Suddenly, he got the idea.

"(He's stalling? I guess he's stalling so the enemy could quickly forget about me.)" Fox silently got up, going over to the figure as sneakily as possible.

"I was just asking a question, and you directly shot it down. What a waste." Wolf said in a teasing and mocking manner as he snuffed his hand on his pocket. He spotted Fox sneaking behind the figure as he concentrated on the hooded figure.

"What?!" The hooded figure shouted in annoyance and anger.

"Didn't you hear me! You're sounding pathetic."Wolf replied while his muzzle was forming a smirk. The figure growled.

"Are you stalling me?" The hooded figure asked with some aggression on his voice.

Wolf tried to act it cool. "Why would I be staling you?" He asked. Before Fox could knock out the figure, the mysterious being heard Fox's metal footsteps. He grabbed the hand with his free hand. He looked behind him as he raised a brow, Fox grinned. The figure turn his head to Wolf about to kick him. He quickly blocked it with his hand, the NDS still on it. His finger was on the "ON" button as Wolf's boot hit the hands of the figure as the figure's finger pressed the ON button and the NDS was sent flying. The NDS landed on the ground and started to shine causing Wolf and Fox to cover their eyes. Once the shine stopped, Fox looked around, but the figure and the NDS both vanished.

"Dammit! He escaped!" Fox cursed.

"Oh no! The NDS is gone! It is sent to Earth!" Master Hand said alarmed. "No, No, No, No!"

Wolf rolled his eyes as he stared at the panicking hands. "So, what?!" Wolf asked, annoyed. Master Hand glared at him, which somehow worked although he had no eyes.

"What do you mean, "So what?!" The humans are in grave danger! I saw the figure jump in there! We need to get the NDS back and stop him!" Master Hand said with huge concern in his voice.

Wolf now showed a disgusted expression. "Are you an idiot, Hand?! I'm not going to the real world to get your stupid device just to get raped by my fans!" Wolf yelled while Fox agreed with him.

"Don't get me mad, Wolf! I'll send all of you there and you will all find that device!" Master Hand said, seething red by now.

"No!" Wolf shot back aggressively. Master Hand looked at him as he is very red and he was steaming.

"You leave me no choice, Wolf O'Donnell!" Master Hand yelled loud, and by loud, I meant that his voice echoed through the halls of the mansion all the way to the dorms.

 _ **Sometime Later...**_

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Wolf was screaming in pain as he kept getting ping-ponged from left to right. Fox and the rest of the Smashers sweat-dropped at the sight.

"Do you think he deserves this...?" Link asked. Princess Zelda just shrugged. They watched as Wolf was suddenly sent flying off the boundary as he disappeared with a bright light.

 _ **GAME!**_

As the red door opened, they saw Wolf enter with some of his clothes being ripped off, His eye patch nearly being ripped apart and bruises around his body. "Did you enjoy being in there?" Falco asked mockingly with a grin. Wolf glared at him.

"Shut up, bird brain! No one asked you!" Wolf said angrily.

"Ahem!" Everyone looked at Master Hand, but Wolf gave him a menacing glare saying "I'll get you, Hand!" "Now Wolf, will you go to the world of Earth? If not, then I'll happily throw you in there again." Master Hand said intimidatingly.

Wolf growled. "Hmph! Fine! I'll go and get your stupid device!" Wolf said annoyed as he looked away with crossed arms.

"Splendid! Now go get your self cleaned up in the infirmary, and change those broken clothes." Master Hand said Wolf grunted as he left the building.

"I'll go to the infirmary." Mario said as he magically changed into z doctor uniform equipped with a head mirror as he dashed to the infirmary.

"Everyone! Go get some sleep, for we shall start the mission tomorrow!" Master Hand announced.

"What about are vacation?!" Falco complained.

"That will have to wait. Right now, Earth could be endangered if that NDS found its way into the wrong hands. No pun intended. I hope you all understand why I have to cancel it." Everyone nodded expect Falco who groaned in annoyance. "Now with that out of the way, you're dismissed." Everyone nodded as every single one of them left the broken command room while Fox dragged a grumpy Falco who had his arms crossed. Diddy giggled at the sight as he remembered he did that to Fox and Falco. Now Fox is dragging Falco by the butt.

As the last of the Smashers left. Master Hand was alone in the room. "Whoever you are, figure, you won't get NDS..." The hand muttered. As he stared at the fire place.

 _ **Earth~**_

In the world known as Earth, video games were created by humans and are still being made to this day. Now people were going through their normal lives as they seemed to ignore a silhouette falling from the sky.

The NDS was falling from the sky all way to the bottom. It fell at a high speed as it landed in the garbage can, a cat jumping out in fright. The NDS was still intact as a shadow approached the alley way.

(Warning! My Language will be spoken. I'll translate.)

"Nakakita ka ba sa isang bagay? (Did you see something?)" A female voice could be heard asking.

"Mayroong akong nakakita na isang bagay na nahulog mula sa langit. (I did see something fall from the sky.)" A male voice replied. As they approached the garbage ca,n they looked inside to see what fell and saw the NDS. "A Gaming Console?"

"Pwede iyan maging regalo sa Pasko, (That's good it could be a christmas present,)" The female voice said as he looked at her.

"Sigurado ka ba? (Are you sure?)" The male voice asked.

"Medyo sigurado ako. Palagi siyang nag-iisa sa bahay mula pa nang umalis si ryan para sa kolahe. (I'm pretty sure. He is always alone in the house ever since Ryan left for college.)" The female replied.

"Sige, pero kailangan ito ng isang bala. (Fine, this needs a [game] cartridge.)" The male voice said.

"Sige, bumili tayo. (Then let's buy.)" The female voice said as they both left the alley.

* * *

 _Hello. My name is John, nice to meet you! As you see, I'm your ordinary 15 year old teen, who likes video games. I'll tell you a bit about my self. I'm not an honor student, I'm just a shy student without many friends. I live alone in my house in the country of Kuwait, a desert country in the Middle East. My brother used to live with us, but he left for college to become an engineer. I did support him of course, but when he left, it is mostly silence. It was mostly just me playing video games on my PS4 or PC; I was just a normal kid enjoying his fantasy. I mostly never leave my house and I'm super anti-social so it's not easy for me to talk to someone eye to eye. That's because I'm always alone. My parents come home late which means they're away from 1 PM all the way to midnight or even 1 AM. Now there, now you know a bit about my self. Today is Christmas. It was 1:44 AM they were supposed to come home, but who knows what they are up to. I was writing fanfiction for Zootopia, titled Zootopia: The New Road Ahead._

"Alright just write a few of these lines for Jake." John muttered to himself as he started typing faster on the keyboard as he kept focusing on what he's writing on the screen. "And..."He pressed Enter. "Done!" John proclaimed as he relaxed on his chair. He saved the data. "The chapter is ready to posted." John pointed his mouse on the publish button as he clicked New Story, Chapter/Content. "There! Chapter Two is posted! Let's hope I didn't forget the dots this time." John stood up from the chair he looked at the time from the laptop he saw the time was 1:56. "Sheesh, they are sure taking their time. It's Christmas today..." He his attention turned to the door when he heard a knock. "Coming!" John ran to the door then opened it.

"Hello, Mama, Papa. What took you guys so long?" John asked his parents.

"Sorry John, we were buying something for you." John's mother replied as she handed out a blue present. "Merry Christmas, anak(son) ." John looked at the present as he placed it on his brown chair, then opened it. He opened the box and saw an NDS with Pokémon Pearl. "An NDS!" John exclaimed in happiness. He ran to his parents and hugged them. "Thank you, Mama, Papa." He let go of them and grabbed the NDS and ran to his parents' room. His parents just smiled as they got in and left John to play on his new console.

John inserted the game and started playing. He didn't notice the Smasher symbol as a figure far away looked at him and smirked. He disappeared into the darkness. John didn't know what kind of journey he would go through with the The New Dimensional Source on his hand...

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

* * *

 _Featuring On The Next Chapter..._

 _"Look just wear this jacket, put the hood on and hide your tail! I'm still freaked out that you guys exist. I'll cover for you if people start asking questions. Let's go to my house, then we'll talk." John said. Fox sighed as he wore the jacket, put the hood on, then hid his tail. John started leading Fox to his house, but he was stopped by some friends._

 _"John! You cunt!" A boy said. John looked at his right he could see a small boy running at him while another caught up._

 _"Oh, umm...Hi, Khaled, Yousef, w-what are you two doing here?" John asked in a bit of a panic and sweating a bit. John could see Fox's muzzle as he covered it more with the hood._

 _"You are one big cunt!" Khaled cursed loudly._

 _"W-what did I do?!" John asked backing away._

 _"Where were you?! I was bored to death!" Khaled complained_

 _"Look, I'm sorry, but I was busy! I need to go now!"John said trying to walk away with Fox. They seemed to nice him now._

 _"Who is he?" Yousef asked. Looking at Fox, John could see his tail so he quickly blocked their sight._

 _"U-ummm...He is my cousin! Look he's hungry so I got to go now! Bye, come on!" John ran from his friend with a fast Fox trying not to expose his tail._

 _"Did you see a tail?" Khaled asked._

 _"Nah, probably just you!"_

 _"W-who are you?!"John asked terrified. The hooded stayed silent._

 _The hooded figure looked at him, then the NDS. "Hand me that NDS!" the hooded figure demanded. John eyes widened._

 _"W-what?! But this was a present from my parents!" John yelled._

 _"Fine then." The hooded figure approached John, who backed away._

 _Fox got in front of him. "John, run to your parents' room! I'll deal with this guy."_

 ** _A/N: Well, this is the first chapter. I'll just quickly say that I'm still working on the Zootopia story. I wanted to write something different and I moved to the Philippines. That is the reason why I couldn't write. Anyway without further ado, see ya later._**

 ** _P.S: FNAF World: Chained World is now on Fazbear 13 please view the story. It was originally going to be written by me. Thank you._**

Beta'd and Edited by: Vanillite the Dragonslayer


	2. Chapter II:Meeting A Smasher

_**A/N:Before we get on to the story. I want to clarify something. To any of you who thinks this is a copy.**_

 _ **1.)This story is inspired by someone known as TheAuraChannelerChris this is not a copy of his work.**_

 _ **2.)The story is set when Tabuu was defeated so Tabuu isn't the main antagonist. The main antagonist is UNKNOWN. that cuts out Tabuu hope you enjoyed the spoiler.**_

 _ **3.)It not a copy about that 3ds story like I said inspired about the super smash bros brawl sub space of emissary worlds conquest with the wii remote to travel instead its an NDS. And if I know the story related to a white knight competently different story then. Yes both earthlings, both have the power of travelling to the smash mansion, but here the difference which is number 4 and 5.**_

 _ **4.)Competently different plot line. You haven't even seen what gonna happen don't jump to a conclusion saying this is a copy.**_

 _ **5.)The protagonist is being tracked down by the hooded figure. That is one main aspects of the story, John is being chased it well be mentioned here. The protagonist is in fear that's another aspect of the story. Many difference if your talking about that one story.**_

 _ **6.)I did not give my actual age. I'm not 15.**_

 _ **Now, I hope this satisfies you all and to that anonymous reader whoever you are saying COPY ALERT: Don't come up with conclusions now saying this is a copy I now said It out loud. The reason I already wrote it. If you still think this is copy tell me the story that I "copied" and I will compare it.**_

 _ **Sorry, for the little aggression.**_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 2: Meeting a Smasher**_

 _ **Smash Mansion-**_

After Wolf had been beaten up in Cruel Brawl, he had his wounds healed up by Dr. Mario, and wore a fresh set of new clothes. And by fresh, it was just the same clothes, only cleaned up. After he was done he went directly to his room to get ready for the mission of getting Master Hand's NDS. He opened the door to his room to get some sleep. The light of the hallway lightened up his room all the way to Fox's bed. He could see Fox turning the other way, in his sleepwear. He was sleeping somewhat peacefully. Fox was the one supposed to be sleeping late because he doesn't trust Wolf, thinking he might slice him in his sleep. Wolf had the opportunity kill Fox now, but he seemed a bit hesitant. He sighed as he shook his head, and closed the door. Wolf walked past Fox's bed, changed into his sleepwear got onto his comfy bed. He took a quick glance at Fox before turning to the wall. Wolf slowly shut his eyes as he drifted off to sleep.

 _A Few Hours Later..._

Beyond the horizon of Smash Mansion, the sun was up. The window to Fox and Wolf's room was open as the beam of light strike Wolf's good eye."Agh!" Wolf yelped, as he blocked it. He could hear Fox shifting positions.

''Close the light...'' Fox muttered, sleepy. Wolf rolled his eyes as he stood up lazily. He approached the window while looking down. He then looked up ,which he quickly regretted, as he blocked his eye from the sunlight. He swiftly closed the window he looked at the clock. It read 7:00 A:M.

''Pup, It's seven in the morning, get your ass up." Wolf said as he yawned. Fox sat up with his fur messed up. He shook his head, got out of his bed, and walked to the bathroom. He made sure to close the door on his way in. Wolf waited for his rival to be done with whatever he was doing. He could hear water inside the bathroom, then a knock on the door to their dorm.

"Hello? Fox, Wolf are you awake?" A voice asked behind the door. Wolf recognized the voice.

"Yes, Mr. Blue Hair, we're awake." Wolf said teasingly, annoying the person behind the door.

"How many times do I have to tell you, my hair isn't blue! My hair i-"" The voice was cut off. The person it belonged to was Ike. He was the fearless leader of Griel Mercenary, hailing from the world of Fire Emblem.

"Yeah, yeah no one cares, why are you here?" Wolf asked. He didn't care what the response was.

''Master Hand wants all of the Smashers at the command room by 9:00 A:M. That's it."Ike replied.

''Sure, sure, me and Fox are gonna be there." Wolf said. He heard Ike walk away from the door.. After waiting for his rival to finish his shower, he saw Fox. His fur was cleaned and dried. "Pup, ready up. Master Hand wants all the Smashers in the command room." Fox grunted at him, but nodded. Wolf entered the bathroom with a towel on his shoulders. After his shower, he noticed Fox was gone, Wolf shrugged, since he didn't care. He put on his clothes and boots. The clock read 8:45 when Wolf walked out of the room. Wolf would be happily sleeping on his bed, he thought. But no, Master Hand wanted the Smashers to find his stupid device.

Wolf entered the command room. It was not broken like before. He found the chair with his name on it, and sat down with crossed arms. Wolf sat next to an angel kid, named Pit. Pit was a loyal servant of the goddess of light, Palutena. He was also the captain of the royal guards. Pit sat down near Lucas as the Smashers waited for the Master Hand.

Master Hand entered the command room, floating his way that is. He ''stood'' at the middle of the table. ''Ahem! Attention! Smashers!'' said Master Hand. Everyone looked at the host. "Now as you all know, the NDS is at Earth. Now Earth is filled with different countries, which means it might be hard to locate it because it could be anywhere." Every smasher started to chatter among themselves. While Master Hand tried to silence them, a robot named ROB approached him.

''ROB, I need you to do something for me" said Master Hand

''[Yes, Creator?]''ROB asked.

''Can you locate the NDS?''Master Hand replied, ROB shook his head.

''[No Creator, to track it's specific location would prove impossible..]''.

Master Hand sighed. ''I'm afraid that would happen...''

''[There is a solution. I can't tell the exact location, but I can tell you where it might be.]''

''What do you have in mind, ROB?''

''[I can scan the Earth. It might tell me which continent it is located in]''

"Go ahead ROB.''

ROB nodded as his eyes started to glow for a minute. Master Hand patiently waited for ROB to finish.

ROB's eyes slowly turned back to normal. ''[Scan complete.]

''So?''

''[My suggestions are that it could be in a hot country, but the weather is atom. The continent is Asia.]''

''How many countries are in Asia?"

''[Around 47.]'' Master Hand gave a shocked look.

''47?! We have 35 Smashers! That isn't enough!"

''[Technically, you might still be able to find it, because you only have a 10% of not finding it. It also might be best to tell them about the NDS.]" Master Hand felt unsure saying it's true powers, but nodded in understanding.

''I see..."

He turned to the Smashers, who were still talking. ''Attention!" Every single Smasher looked at him. ''We have narrowed the NDS's location to a region on Earth. It's in the continent of Asia." Master Hand proclaimed.

''What's Asia?''Falco asked. They only knew about Earth itself, not the continents and countries which covered it.

''Asia is part of the earth. It's a continent.'' Master Hand explained.''Now there are 47 countries where the NDS might be, and I'm sending each one of you there.'' Everyone was confused, but nodded.''Now, I'm going to explain the purpose behind the NDS, so listen carefully...''

 _Earth~_

Every student packed their belongings. "Bus students only!" The teacher yelled. John was sitting alone on his bench. As he waited for the bell to ring, he looked around the classroom. Most of the students were from Jordan, Lebanon, Pakistan, and what not. A fat boy with glasses began to approach John. ''Hey, John. H-how much did you get in the math exam?'' He asked, putting his hands on the table. John looked at him.

''40.''John replied with a little embarrassment, as that was the worst he ever done in maths.

''Ahah! You have very good luck!'' The fat boy said. John looked confused.

''And, why is that Fahad?" John asked with curiosity. How was that lucky?

''Because, I failed in maths.'' Fahad replied.

 _ **RRRRRRIIIIIIINNNNNNGGGGGGG**_

With that cue every student picked up their bags and ran to the door. John sighed, as he was left alone. He picked up his bag, and exited the class, being the last to do so. He went down the stairs, and towards the front door and gate. John approached the gate ready to leave, but he was stopped by someone calling his name.

''JOHN!'' John turned around as he saw a small boy running with a bag.

''Uh, yes?'' John asked, unsure what to say.

''Want to play Fortnite?'' The boy asked teasingly. John had the urge to roll his eyes, but he couldn't. That would make him a bad friend, right? He really wanted to work on his fanfiction, but he couldn't since his friend always wanted to play Fortnite. John laughed a bit pretending to be happy, but on the inside he wasn't.

''Well, I'll see if I can.''John said, which basically meant there was a 50/50 shot at it.

''Please?'' the boy asked. John looked at him bored.

''Khaled, I've got to go and pick my mom up.'' John said, a bit annoyed now.

''With sugar on top?'' Khaled pleaded again. John was getting pretty annoyed now, but he was hiding it.

''Well see, it depends. Look, I got to go know alright?'' John said.

On his way back home, he saw one student from his school running away from an alley way. John was confused, but shrugged it off in the end.

 _Earlier..._

Fox was free falling from the sky. He had been sent to an Arabian country where the NDS might be held. As Fox was falling from above he could see lots of buildings. He closed his eyes for a moment, bracing for impact. But then he opened them again, and saw a garbage can that he was approaching fast.

 **SMASH!**

Fox crashed into the large garbage can. Feathers were flung out of it, and an alley cat jumped in fright. It took Fox a moment to gather his senses, as the fall dazed him quite a bit.

''Well, that's a nice way to start...''Fox muttered he sat up. He heard a gasp he looked to his right. He saw a boy looking at him before anyone could speak up. The boy let out a scream of terror as he ran away from the scary vulpine. Fox frowned as he got out of the garbage can. He then hid behind it to avoid being spotted.

''Now that I'm here, what can I do? '' Fox muttered to himself. '' I guess I have to hide in the shadows until I hopefully find the NDS.''

He got out of his hiding spot, and looked around the area. The only people he could see were a group of kids. He hid behind a nearby car. There, he could see through the windows that they were passing by. Fox hoped that no one passed his way other wise he was toast. As he continued to search the area, he saw a road.''There's no way I can get through that open area...If only there was something...''. It was then that an abandoned jacket caught his attention. This gave him an idea.

As Fox put the jacket he burrowed into it. He felt uncomfortable wearing two layers, plus his fur coat in the hot temperatures. Fox made sure the hood covered his face, so that way it couldn't be seen easily. He then concealed his tail.''Well, here goes nothing...'' He walked out of the shadows, into the crowded sidewalk. Luckily, most of the people were looking at their phones, and didn't notice him. "Well, at least I can walk freely...'' Fox thought to himself ''Now to find the NDS...''. Fox crossed the crosswalk while looking around the area, hoping to spot the NDS.

 _Meanwhile..._

It was nighttime, and John had decided he wasn't going to play with Khaled. He wanted to spend some time with his new NDS, rather than play Fortnite. He ignored the bombardment of messages sent by Khaled. ''Can't he take the hint? ''John sighed as another message appeared on his tablet. He looked down at it. ''Are we gonna play yet? Or maybe tomorrow?''read the message.'''When will he stop asking?!'' John asked himself, visibly annoyed.

Looking at the clock, it read 8:33 P:M. He got off his chair, and walked out the door with his NDS in hand. He had to go pick up his mom today from the mall. John waited patiently in the elevator while playing his NDS. The elevator stopped on the 1st floor, and John walked out of it, continuously playing his game. While walking, he accidentally hit someone by mistake. ''Watch where you're going!" The person said. John looked up from his NDS and realized his mistake.

''Oh, sorry sir, I wasn't looking where I was going!" John apologized. He offered his hand to the hooded figure, but he was eying the NDS in the boys other hand. ''Sir?''

The person shook his head.''Sorry''. He grabbed the boys hand. Did John feel something...furry?

''Sir, are you okay? Why do I feel you have... fur...?" John asked. The person started to sweat profusely.

''A-ah, n- nothing. I-I got to go now. Watch where you're going next time!" The person took off, and John was left confused. After wondering for a moment, he shrugged it off as he continued to walk.

Eventually, John entered the area known as Al Mohalab Mall. He sat down on an open chair playing his NDS. For a second, he stopped and looked around the area. John then spotted a familiar face.''Yousef!'' John called over his friend. Yousef took a moment to look for where the voice was coming from, then found John in his chair.

''John!'' Yousef said as he approached his friend.''What are you doing here?''

''Oh, just picking up my mom.''John explained. ''You?''

''Meh. Just gonna watch cinema with my family.'' Yousef replied. John nodded in understanding.

''Nice, what movie?'' John asked. Yousef shrugged in response.''You don't know?''

''Nope. My dad said it was a surprise.'' Yousef proclaimed. John nodded again.

''I see...Well I hope you have fun!'' John said smiling. The two continued to talk together. They didn't notice the hooded figure was watching them.

''He has the NDS, but do I have to approach him...?'' Fox asked himself. He tried to come up with a plan, but was interrupted when he saw a woman approaching John. By context clues, Fox guessed it was his mother. They were walking out of the building together. Fox hid behind a car as he overheard a conversation between the two.

''Nak, Do you have school tomorrow?''John's mom asked. Fox made sure to listen carefully on what they were saying.

'No. All of the classes have school except us mama, because 8th graders must be there to help the teachers.'' John explained.

''Bakit?(Why?)''John's mom asked, confused.

''Don't know really, but I'm guessing it's a school festival. I'll have to be there at 9, and I'll be back at around 12.'' John explained.

''I guess I'll have to approach him when he leaves school. Better then than never.'' Fox thought.

Inside the school...

All the grade 8th students were busy helping out the teachers with the decorations, chairs, games etc. John was having a sour back from carrying heavy things like a freaking desk, and a TV, even if was atom he was sweating. Festivals normally begin during January, but the school decided to make it early due to the schedules. After spending the whole day carrying, cleaning, and arranging stuff they final got to go home.

''Man, my back hurts."A boy complained. John rolled his eyes. His back was still sour.

''Your not the only one...'John muttered in annoyance.

''You should have seen what Faisal was carrying, John!'' Another boy said while laughing. Faisal shot him with a glare.

'Oh, I know. It looked like you were about to collapse when you gave it to the teacher.'' John said, letting out a chuckle. Faisal rolled his eyes. ''Anyways see you guys tomorrow.'' John walked the opposite direction of the boys.

Fox was waiting for John to pass the alley way. He heard him talking which meant he was out. Fox listened carefully to his foot steps as they became louder and louder. When he seemed to pass him, he grabbed the kids arms, dragging him in the alley way. Fox hoped he got the right one or he was screwed.''H-HEY! L-LET M-'' John couldn't finish his sentence before Fox blocked his mouth. ''LET ME GO!'' John demanded, but only his muffled screams could be heard.

''Shh!'' Fox demanded. He listened carefully to see if anyone had been alerted. Luckily no foot steps were heard. John was extremely terrified, this guy could be a killer for all he knew.. For some time, nobody broke the silence. Fox looked at John, but John didn't know who the heck this guy was. ''I want to talk. I'll let you go, but don't scream.'' Fox said. His voice was a little intimidating, although he tried his best not to scare the child. John nodded even though his mouth was blocked. Fox slowly let go and watched him.

A few moments of awkward silence, John decided to ask, ''S-s-so w-what do you want to talk about? And who are you?!'' in a shaking voice.

Fox looked at him for minutes, before he removed his hood revealing who he was. John's eyes widened, since he was looking at an anthropomorphic fox.''AA-'' John was about the scream, but again his mouth was quickly covered.

''Quiet!'' Fox demanded. John obeyed, but still couldn't believe it. Fox slowly let go.''Look I know it's shocking that I exist, but yes it's true I'm Fox McCcloud!" he said. John was flabbergasted. He would have never thought that a game character existed in real life, let alone talk to him. He stood frozen still, staring at Fox. Fox rolled his eyes.

 _ ***SLAP***_

''OWW! What was that for?!'' John asked angrily as he put his hand on the cheek. A bright red hand mark could be seen.

''Oh, good to know your back to your senses,'' Fox replied sarcastically.''Now as I was saying. Yes we game characters exist.''

'B-but how?''John asked shocked, ignoring the searing pain he felt on his cheek.

''Look it's hard for me to explain, and I should be getting to the main point.'' Fox said.''Look remember that NDS you got?''

''Yes. It was a Christmas present.''John explained.

'' But that is no ordinary NDS.''Fox explained. John wanted to ask why, but let Fox explain on his own. ''It is called The New Dimensional Source.''John looked even more confused. Fox frowned.''You want me to explain it don't you?''

''Yes, please do.''John replied, while he nodded his head. Fox sighed. He was expecting this, but didn't want to have to go through it never the less.

''Alright, this might take long. Now the NDS was created by Master Hand.'' Fox explained. John opened his mouth about to ask a question, but Fox raised his hands in a stop gesture. ''Let me continue, ask questions after the explanation. Now how he made it, I don't know. But based on what he told me and the rest of the Smashers, it was created with Mythical Crystals. Mythical Earthenia(Ear-Tha-Nia), Mythical Mantinia(Man-Ti-Nia), Mythical Zirconia(Zir-Co-Nia) and what not. There are five in total, then you can make the transporter. This is where the dimensional source comes in. These gems are scattered around the world of Smash the only person who knows about them are Master Hand and Crazy Hand. They collected them and made the NDS for vacation purposes, which is an idiot move if you ask me. There is more to this, but I prefer to explain it in your home, where I won't get caught by people. If that's ok with you, of course.''Fox asked, John thought about it. He had the NDS on him, and up to now he never knew of it's uniqueness, so the more he learned, the better.

''A-Alright, but put the jacket on and hide your tail and muzzle. I-I'm still freaked you guys exist, but don't worry, Ill cover for you if they ask questions. Come on.''Fox sighed, as he was very uncomfortable with his disguise. He zipped up the jacket, then put on the hoodie. He could fell sweat around his body, since he wearing three layers, and his fur. Fox hid his tail the same place he had kept it before. Before leaving, his stomach growled. Fox had forgot that he hadn't eaten in a while. John turned around, hearing Fox's stomach.

'You hungry?'' John asked. Fox blushed in embarrassment.

''I haven't eaten since I got here...'' Fox replied sheepishly

'' M-maybe I c-can make you something before you start explaining.''John offered, figuring it was no harm.

Fox smiled and nodded.''That would be appreciated.'' John also nodded. He looked around and saw no one around.

''C'mon, Let's g-''

''JOHN, YOU CUNT!'' A boy cursed with squawking tone. John started to sweet and panic for a bit. He regained his composure back as he turned around.

'H-hi...Khaled, Youser...W-what are you guys doing here?'' John asked while showing a neutral expression. On the inside however, he was panicking. He looked at Fox he, and was able to see a bit of his muzzle. John pushed Fox's head further down so his muzzle wouldn't be visible. Underneath the hood, Fox showed an annoyed expression.

''JOHN, YOU'RE ONE BIG CUNT!'' Khaled cursed again.

''W-what did I do?!" John asked, backing away.

''Where were you?! I was bored to death!'' Khaled complained.

''L-look, I'm sorry, but I was busy! I need to go now!''John said, trying to walk away with Fox. Both of them seemed to notice him know.

''Who is he?'' Yousef asked. Looking at Fox again, John could see his tail sticking out. He quickly blocked their sight from it.

John was now in panic mode. He was hoping that they would suddenly go blind. ''U-u-ummmmm...t-t-this is my cousin. Look, he's very hungry now, I have no time to talk. Bye!'. John ran from his friends with Fox, who was trying not to expose his tail.

''Hey, Yousef...Did you see a tail...?'' Khaled asked.

''A tail? Nah probably just you.''Yousef said as Khaled shown a frowning expression.

 _John's House…_

John and Fox had made their way to the former's house. John was ready to give a speech-like explanation to his parents, but surprisingly they weren't in the house. He sighed in relief, and let in the vulpine. Fox threw down the hooded jacket, then his StarFox jacket and finally his scarf on a nearby chair. His furry arms were visible, and drenched.

''Were you seriously feeling that hot? It's nearly winter.'' John asked. Fox glared at him.

'Well, you weren't the one wearing four layers, were you?! I can feel the sweat soaking on my back.'' Fox complained. John lead him into the main room. John turned the fan on, so Fox could refresh and cool off.

''W-well, m-make yourself at home. I-Ill make you something.'' John said, still a little nervous. After all, he was still not fully used to seeing an actual game character from his child hood. Fox nodded as he sat on the bed. John exited the room as he started to cook a basic omelette. As the omelette was cooking, John thought to himself.

''(I can't believe they actually exist. Maybe I can get a chance to meet the others...)''. He was quickly snapped back into reality heard by the pan sizzling. John quickly ran to the pan, and flipped the omelette. He sighed in relief, as it thankfully wasn't burnt.

Fox was examining the room. It was quite nice, but less advanced than his world. Then he found the NDS sitting at the top of John's laptop. He walked over to it, and quickly examined the DS, without touching it. He could tell it was Master Hand's NDS, because of the Smash emblem that was seared into it. His mission is almost complete, he thought. Now the only thing left to do is to try and convince John to stay with him and the rest of the Smashers until everything is sorted out. Fox sat back down as he waited for John to come back. He didn't have to wait long, however, as the teen came quickly with a plate in his hand.

''Sorry it took a while. Here, um...It just a basic omelette.'' John said shyly. Fox smiled while he nodded.

''No need to be embarrassed.'' Fox said still showing his friendly smile. John nodded, then sat down on a bunk bed.

''It's a bit hot though.'' John replied.

''Then I'll take the time to tell you more then.'' Fox said. ''Now as I was saying before, those gems are extremely powerful. If it gets into the wrong hands, it can cause chaos across all of the worlds. That's why we Smashers are trying so hard to protect these gems, and our worlds, including yours. You can say that our worlds are connected.

''But I don't understand. You mean to say that the gems inside the NDS are connected to our world?'' John asked, incredibly confused.

''That is what I just said.''

''But how?''John asked.

''I don't know myself. Master Hand didn't explain to us.'' Fox said. ''There's more. That NDS can only be handled by humans. Master Hand also can, but I don't know how. Also, it can transform into a more powerful item.''

''Into what?'' John asked. If he wasn't paying attention before, he was now.

''I don't know, but what I do know is that it requires an owner to show its true potential. As of now, you are that owner! You alone have the potential to show it's true powers!'' Fox said while pointing at John. At this point, he had his mouth to the floor. His expression was filed with confusion, fear, and many other emotions, as he tried to absorb everything that was just said to him.

Eventually, he snapped back enough to yell ''What?! ME?! B-but I-I'm j-just a kid! H-how can I show its true potential?!'' He had just got the NDS yesterday, and now he was being thrown into a destiny he never asked for.

''Age doesn't matter. What does matter is that you own it. And because of it, you're being tracked down right now.''Fox explained. John's face changed to a look of fear.

''T-track down?! Wh-what do you mean?!''John asked fearfully.

Fox could tell he was terrified. ''Calm down. I'll spring right into action if an enemy appears. Now let me explain. Remember what I said about the Crystals gets into the wrong hands? '' John nodded, still a bit frightened.'' Now we encountered a being in the Smash Mansion earlier. He can hold the NDS, so we figure it might be a human, but that might be a possibility or just a coincidence...''

''W-what do you mean?" John asked. Fox ignored him.

''If he is not human...then what is he?''Fox mumbled to himself.

''Hello?'' John said, trying to get his attention. Fox seemed to snap back into reality. He shook his head.

''Sorry, I was in deep thought. Anyways, it wants the NDS, so we need to keep it safe at all costs. That's all the explanation I can give you.'' Fox said. John slowly nodded.

'But, I still don't understand some things.'' Fox looked at him with a raised brow.''Like, how do you guys exist?'' John asked as he looked at him.

''Master Hand should explain that.''Fox said.''By the way, I never got your name.''

John looked away. He had completely forgotten to give his name during the course of the events.''Oh, um...I'm John.!''

''Well, John I think I should get to the serious part .''Fox now looked stern ''You are not safe here...heck anywhere.''

''C-can't I just pass this on to someone? A-and the it's done, and there will be no need to worry! right?!''John explained while sweating.

''It's not that simple!''Fox said, nearly shouting. ''You are the original owner. Sure you can pass it, but you'll still be tracked! The original owner is the only one who can properly use it, so they will still want you!''

'B-but...''John tried to come up with another excuse, but couldn't.

''If I leave you here, and they find you, they can cause the destruction of the whole world! You don't want Earth to be vaporized, do you?'' Fox asked. He was staring sternly into John's eyes. It felt like Fox was staring into his soul.

''Um...but what about my parents?! Won't they worry?!'' John asked. Fox dropped the glare for a more sincere look.

''John, you will see them again when time comes, but right now...the fate to our world is at risk, and it all relies on you protecting that NDS. Until everything is sorted out, the Smashers will look after you. You won't see them again if you stay here.'' Fox said, his voice having changed to a soothing one. John looked down. He was basically trapped in the corner. It's like kill or be killed.

''What should I do? I'm suddenly being thrown back and forth...Why did this happen to me? '' John thought to himself. Fox could see some hesitation.

''I'll give you time...I expect an answer though, alright? I don't have all day.'' Fox said while looked into John's eyes. John backed off as he watched Fox hesitantly return to eating.

'' I'll have to leave home...If what Fox said is true...If they do catch me...all life on Earth and in the world of video games will be gone.'' John thought to himself. '' I'm not gonna take the risk...I just hope this isn't a made up story and lies...Gonna have to leave Earth...my friends...my parents...my house...but I have to do it!''.

John had made his decision.

He walked outside to his balcony, and looked around the street. He could see cars, and people doing their normal things. Damn was he going to miss it. He could hear a noise coming from behind. John turned around to see Fox standing in the doorway.

''So? What is your decision?'' Fox asked. John gulped.

''I-i'm gonna...come with...you...'' John proclaimed in a low tone. Fox smirked.

''Good decision.'' He watched John grab the NDS from on the laptop.''You know how to turn the portal on?''Fox asked. John shook his head. Fox frowned.''Well, I don't even know ho-'' He was cut off suddenly by a figure smashing through the balcony. John looked shocked. Before him was a hooded figure, whose face wasn't visible. Fox glared at him.

''You!'' Fox growled. He was watching him carefully. The figure ignored Fox. Instead he focused his gaze on John.

''You, Boy! Hand over that NDS!'' The figure said pointing at the teenager. John held his NDS close and tight.

''Wh-what? B-but it was a present from my parents!'' John said fearfully. He slowly backed away.

The hooded figure grunted. ''Figured. I'll just have to take it my self!'' The figure approached John. Fox stood in front of John to protect him.

''You get this kid over my dead body!'' Fox said. He was getting into his fighting stance. The figure let out a "Humph ". Fox called over to John ''John go into your parents room! It might get messy here. Find a way to open it. If its on it should activate after 10 seconds! I'll be there.'' John nodded as he ran out the room. Fox eyed the figure before he made a move using his foot to kick the table toward him. Fox dodged as the table was now upside down blocking the door he stood next to a chair. Both eyed each other before Fox quickly threw the chair next to him. The hooded figure kicked the chair that was sent flying to him. The chair smashed into the tv. He saw Fox dashing before Fox did a kick.

John heard smashing outside his window. He had a tablet and Fox's stuff with him. John started to press every button, but nothing worked. He pressed and held the "ON" button and it but instead of starting the portal, it started the game. John removed the cartridge from the NDS and the console turned off. John once again pressed the "ON" button again, and this time it started to shine. John quickly opened the door. ''F-Fox...I think its turning on!'' John shouted. The NDS began to shine brighter.

Fox heard the call. He looked up at the hooded figure. Both had been giving each other a hard fight. The living room was know practically destroyed with the smashed TV, flipped table and broken walls. He touched a ball with his foot he looked down, he smirked. Fox kicked the ball upward before the launching the ball hard at the figure. The figured dodged it, the noticed Fox was running. He began to give chase.

The NDS started to shine brighter in John's hands. He backed away while Fox quickly closed and locked the door behind him. Fox looked at John ''Is it ready?!'' Fox asked.

''Y-yeah I think so!'' The NDS shined even brighter. They heard the door being knocked down.

''Brace yourself!'' Yelled Fox as the light engulfed the whole room. After a while, the light died down, until the room was visibly clear. The figure entered through the damaged door, and began to throughly inspect it. No one was here. However, John had left behind his tablet. The figured looked down at he tablet. He smirked as a dark aura formed around his hand. It then enveloped the tablet screen, creating a dark portal. ''Don't be so sure you are safe...I will get you. Next time.'' the hooded figure said. He entered the portal before it disappeared, leaving a normal tablet with cracks on it's screen.

Later that night...

Oh, Ryan...Ready to surprise your brother?'' John's mom asked. Ryan smiled while he nodded He couldn't blame John for not coming, since he was busy. They entered the house. The main area seemed to be normal enough, although quiet. They approached the living room door.''

''John! I'm her-'' Ryan was got off. He saw the room, and it was destroyed. The bed was cut in half, the TV was smashed, and the table was blocking their way. The drawer that held the TV on it was also destroyed, the laptop and desk were both smashed, and the walls were scrapped. Everything was broken, and John was nowhere to be seen. They both dropped their food right where they were standing, and started panicky looking for John.

 _To Be Continued..._

* * *

 _Featured In The Next Chapter..._

 _''Well,_ its _nice to meet_ you. _'' John said with a sheepish smile._

 _''Are you sure the kid is not gonna rape us?'' Falco asked. John looked at him_ shock _._

 _''RAPE?! I'm 15_ god _dammit!'' John cursed._

 _''Fox explained you the situation. Right?'' Master Hand_ asked, John _nodded.''Good, because being the owner of the NDS means it's our responsibility to protect you.''_

 _''I know...'' John said._

 _''But!'' John looked at him confused.''_ Your'e _gonna have to join the tournament in return.''_

 _''Ok, John ready for brawl! I'll show the trailer.'' Master Hand proclaimed. Everyone nodded._

 _''Wonder, what category he picked.''Captain Falcon thought to himself. Everyone looked at the screen._

Story has been beta'd and edited by: CollinCeption


	3. Chapter III:Into The World Of Smash

_**Chapter 3: Into the Smash World**_

 _ **?**_

''Master! I've confirmed that the NDS is with a child!'' The hooded figure reported. He was kneeling before another figure, hidden in the shadows.

''A mere child, you say? Where is it?'' Asked the unknown figure.

''Inside Smash Mansion, Master! Master Hand and Crazy Hand have taken the boy!''

''I see...Bring the boy to me, alive.'' The mysterious figure growled.

''For what reason, Master? The brat isn't needed.'' His Master suddenly turned around and glared down upon him.

''Do not question my decision, Siyet!'' The shout echoed off the walls. Siyet showed no visible signs of fear.

''Understood, Master.'' Siyet said as he began to stand up.

''Good, you are dismissed.'' Siyet nodded, doing a small bow before he left his Master.

''I will get my revenge on you, Hands!'' The mysterious figure said, angrily ''You think you can get all the glory! Ha! I don't think so!''

Smash Mansion

''What is everyone's report?'' Master Hand asked to the smashers.

''Couldn't find the NDS in my area.''

''Could not find it, forgive me.''

''I tried, but no luck.''

''So...I guess you all couldn't find the NDS...''Master Hand said, growing a little concerned. The rest of the Smashers began to sweat and stand in silence. That is, until someone spoke up.

''Wait...Fox is missing.''Falco proclaimed.

Wolf let out a small laugh. ''I'm sure he's getting raped right now.'' He said as he smirked. Everyone glared at him.

''I wish you'd shut up, mutt.'' Falco said in a low tone. Wolf glared back at him.

''What was that, bird brain?!'' Wolf asked, with an intimidating tone rising in his gruff voice.

Before any further argument, Samus Aran got in the way. She was a former soldier now turned into a bounty-hunter. ''Stop it both of you! This not the time to argue about your pointless accusations!''Samus shouted. Both looked away.

''Right now, our best option is to wait for Fox to come!'' Master Hand proclaimed. Everyone silently agreed.

Suddenly, a small but bright light was forming.

''What the?!'' Captain Falcon exclaimed, shocked. The light grew larger and brighter with each passing second.

''W-what's happening?!''Lucas asked, frightened. He hid behind Ness for protection.

''Could it be?!'' Master Hand exclaimed happily. ''I think Fox has done it! He's found the NDS and it's owner!''

Everyone covered their eyes as the light shone brighter and brighter, until it died down. Slowly, the a Smashers began to open their eyes. Indeed, they saw Fox and a human kid lying unconscious on top of Fox's clothes.

''Are they okay?'' Link asked as everyone began to approach the two.

''They are fine. No need to worry.'' Lucario replied, through telepathy of course. Everyone looked at the aura Pokemon before they heard a groan. They looked back down and saw Fox slowly shaking his head. He tried to open his eyes, but couldn't, due to how dazed he was.

''My head...'' Fox muttered in pain. He felt as if he had done 5000 barrel rolls back to back. Fox slipped back into unconsciousness again.

''I think they need rest.'' Mario said. Everyone nodded in agreement.

''Yes they need to rest, because the teleportation causes severe dizziness.'' Master Hand explained. He had gained the attention of all the Smashers. ''It can take up to a few days for them to regain their consciousness. It really depends. Take them to the infirmary!'' Donkey Kong, hero of Donkey Kong island picked up the two with ease. He walked to the infirmary with his nephew Diddy Kong. He looked up to his uncle, and was hoping to be just like him one day.

After a few seconds of nothing, Kirby broke the silence. ''So, what now?''

''We wait.'' Mega-Knight replied.

''He's right. We wait for them to wake up, then we meet the human.'' Master Hand said. It seemed like a reasonable answer. But then, one Smasher asked him a question.

''Wait, if that kid is the true owner...won't the guy in the hood go after him?'' Pit asked. Everyone stopped, and thought to themselves. Pit did bring up a good point. If the hooded figure is after the NDS, won't he go after the kid?

''Pit, your right. He will surely be after the boy...'' Master Hand trailed off.

''Then why not take shifts guarding the infirmary?'' Mario suggested.

''Good thinking. Mario, Luigi, guard the entrance.'' Master Hand ordered. The brothers went off to the infirmary.

''Marth, Ike! Look after Fox and the boy. Make sure the NDS is safe!'' Both of the swordsmen followed Mario and Luigi's path.

'The rest of you, patrol the area. Make sure you have a partner at all times, since we don't know who, or what we're up against. And if you find anything, ANYTHING suspicious at all, report to me immediately!'' Everyone nodded. He turned to the four guards, who were still in sight. ''After 3 hours someone else will take your spot. Let me know in the meantime if Fox and the boy wakes up. You are all dismissed!'' Everyone went their separate ways.

* * *

 ** _11:09 P:M_**

Link and Zelda were now guarding the infirmary while Ness and Lucas were standing by the entrance. They were both looking at Fox and the boy with concerned looks in their faces.''They are taking a while to wake up...''

''Link, calm down. I'm sure they'll wake up eventually.'' Zelda said, in her typical soothing voice.

''I know. I'm just worried for these two.'' Link sighed. Zelda giggled.

''You always worry for everyone. They're not wounded, just unconscious. Sooner or later they will wake up.''

Link let out a ''Heh...'' before a groan was heard. The two Hylians immediately turned around to see John waking up.

''I'll go get Master Hand!'' Link said. He dashed out of the door, being greeted by a confused Ness and Lucas. Both of the physic kids walked into the room.

''What happened?'' Ness asked.

''The boy is waking up now.'' Zelda replied in a low tone. Ness approached, then stood right next to Zelda, with Lucas was behind him. They were watching the boy, who was slowly waking up.

John groaned again. ''My head hurts...'' He thought to himself.

Slowly but surely, he opened his eyes. He could make out a woman, who looked like royalty.

''Are you okay, child?'' The woman asked. He could hear another voice, but the person it was coming from wasn't in his view.

''M-maybe...He still needs rest...?'' It recommended.

''Maybe…'' Said a third voice. John's eyes were beginning to clear up. He looked at his right. He could see… His eyes directly shot up in shock. ''AAH!'' John screamed, as he fell of the bed. ''Oww...'' John groaned, laying on the cold floor.

''A-are you okay...?'' An innocent voice asked. He looked up to see Lucas hiding behind the bed. John stared at him while slowly backing away to a corner.

''Child?'' Zelda said carefully. John was huddled in a corner. It was obvious that he was scared. ''We're not going to hurt you.'' That was when multiple Smashers entered the infirmary. Most were in their sleepwear, having just woke up. Everyone stopped when they saw the boy huddled in the corner

''Is the child ok?'' Master Hand asked.

''He seems to be frightened. ''Zelda explained.

''N-no...'' John said in a low tone. Everyone looked at him. ''I-I'm just shocked...F-Fox wasn't l-lying...''

''Kid...Fox is not the type of guy who lies.'' Falco explained. ''He despises lies, especially if the ones who he calls friends lies to him.'' John widened his eyes, as he waved his arms back and forth frantically.

''I-I didn't mean to offended you! I-I was just tr-''But he was cut off.

''Woah! Slow down boy. No need to panic!'' Master Hand exclaimed. John took a deep breath.

''S-so I'm in Smash Mansion? ''John asked, a bit timed.

''Yes, indeed you are. What is your name, boy?'' Master Hand asked, John looked at him.

''U-um...John...I-it's John.''

''Well John, welcome to Smash Mansion. I'm Master Hand, the host of the tournaments. I can explain everything tomorrow. I wish I could explain now, but just about everyone is asleep, and I don't feel like explaining when everyone is sleeping.''

''Can we leave now? I know this is important and all, but we're all about to pass out.'' Falco said lazily. The yawns of other Smashers only confirmed his statement.

''Alright, everyone go ahead.'' Master Hand said. Everyone shuffled out of the room, until just John, Fox, and Master Hand were left. ''As for you John, you stay here with Fox.'' He said while glancing at the unconscious Fox. ''Neither of you should leave this room until morning. I don't feel safe with you walking around when someone could kidnap you. And remember, keep the NDS safe!''

John had a look of fear.''Can't you take the NDS?'' He asked, Master Hand shook his ''head''.

''It's best for you to keep it.'' Master Hand explained. ''Go ahead and rest. Tomorrow, I shall explain everything to you.'' With this, Master Hand left the room. John sighed as he walked back to the the infirmary bed.

''I would be writing my story,'' John thought to himself. ''Or I could be playing Fortnite with my friends, or be with my family. But instead I have to protect a powerful machine against someone who wants me dead. At least I have video game characters to help me.'' John started to perk up a little at the prospect. It was then that heard a groan. He looked to his left, where he could see that Fox was moving. John carefully approached Fox. Fox slowly opened his eyes, he could see John.

''Are you okay?'' John asked. Fox sat up while putting his hand on his forehead, feeling the headache.

''Other than this headache...I'm fine...'' Fox replied, groaning. He looked around his surroundings, and realized he was in the infirmary. After a few seconds, he looked back at John. ''What happened while I was out?''

''Um...not much. I woke up only about 10 minutes before you.'' John explained.''Master Hand said that we should stay here for now...''

''Why?''

''He said you could protect me and this NDS.'' John explained, Fox nodded in understanding, and then they were both sat in silence.

''You know...'' John hesitantly said. ''When you p-pulled me I-into that alleyway, I-I thought y-you were l-lying.''

Fox quickly changed into a offensive expression. He glared right into John's soul. ''So you're accusing me of lying to you?'' Fox growled a bit. John backed off slightly, in shock and fear.

''I-I didn't mean to offend you! I-I thought y-you were just a-a guy in a Fox suit! Please I-I'm sorry!'' John exclaimed, frightened. Fox's expression softened up for a bit as he sighed.

''Don't worry. I'm not mad at you, but don't accuse me of lying alright?'' Fox asked. John slowly nodded. ''Good. I don't feel like sleeping, so lets talk for a bit.'' John wasn't tired either, so he agreed.

''What is your age?''

''Oh, I'm 15...How about you?''John asked, curious about Fox's age.

''I'm 30.'' He paused for a moment, so he could find another question to ask. ''Are you always alone in your house? Do you live with any other family members?"

''Oh, um...Well, I have a brother. He used to leave with me and my parents, but he went to collage.''John explained.

''What about your parents?'' Fox asked, pushing the subject further.

''They have to work a lot, and mostly have no time to spend with me. It's okay though...I got used to it.'' He looked slightly away from Fox, since he wasn't used to talking eye to eye.

''Well, since we're on the topic of family…'' John said, causing Fox to raise a brow. ''What is your mother's name?''

Fox frowned. He wasn't one to tell anything private from his life, but it seemed fair to do it now. After all, he just embarrassed this kid by asking him personal questions. ''My mother's name is...'' Fox sighed, frowning. ''Vixy...''

''I-i'm sorry I asked...'' John apologized. ''I was curious...''

Fox looked back up at him. John had an apologetic look on his face. He chuckled at his expression. ''It's okay John, you were just curious.'' Fox said, as both of them lightened up and smiled.

''You know, Fox...'' John said, once again grabbing Fox's attention. ''I don't think I've had the chance to tell you this but…you were always my favorite character...''

''Are you trying to flatter me?'' Fox asked. John shook his head.

''No, I'm being honest. Your my favorite character...my childhood hero.'' Fox rubbed the back of head, in embarrassment. ''I-I want to get to know you more...If it's okay with you...?''

Fox looked away. ''Alright then, I want to get to know you too, but!'' He looked back at John with a serious glare. ''I don't expect you to lie to me...alright?''John was slightly intimidated.

''I-I won't lie to you! I swear it!'' Fox let down his glare as he showed a small smile.

''Alright then, good.'' Fox said, patting John's back. John was a sheepishly smiling.

Fox looked to the ticking clock beside him. ''Seems like we should get some sleep. Wouldn't want to be drowsy eyed when Master Hand gives you his big explanation.'' John stoodup, and looked at Fox laying on his side, facing the white wall. He sat on his bed before laying down. ''Hopefully I won't have to deal with this NDS for long…'' John thought to himself, as he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

 _ **The Next Morning...**_

 _"Hey, can you wake up?''_ A voice said. John groaned as he slightly opened his eyes. Before him stood Link. John shot up from his bed in shock. ''Calm down. I won't hurt you!'' Link reassured. The boy's nerves eased as he sat back down.

'' _This isn't a dream after all._ '' He thought..''S-sorry, I kind of freaked out.''

''O-oh, my apologies, I didn't mean to startle you ''

''N-no, it's okay!''

''I thought you would want to eat something. You might not be comfortable eating with us so I brought you some food.'' John gazed behind the Hylian, and saw a cart with a plate of curry on it.

''Thank you.'' John said politely as he took the dish from Link. He took a small bite from it. ''It's nice.''

''I'll be back in a few minutes. Master Hand wants to talk to you.'' Link left the room. John wondered what it was that the Hand wanted to speak to him about. He shrugged after a few seconds, and continued eating peacefully.

About halfway into the dish, John began to think about his parents again. He noticed a tear drip out of his eye. They had to be worried about him, and probably put him on the missing board list. He knew he wouldn't see them for a while, but at least he was protected. John wiped the tear away as he returned to eating, sighing after he swallowed.

Just like he said, Link came back into the room after a few minutes. He saw John looking out the window at the town of Smash. John's face was a little melancholy. Link could tell that he was thinking about something.

''Are you okay?''Link asked.

''I'm just thinking.'' John said dully. Link frowned a little in response.

''Want to share it?'' John looked at him, as he shook his head.

''I rather not talk about it.'' He said as he looked away from Link.

''Alright, Master Hand is expecting you.''Link said, trying to change the subject. John got off the bed standing up.

''Okay then.''

''Follow me.'' Link said as he left the room. John obeyed.

''So, what does Master Hand wants with me?''

''Well, I'm sure you have some questions. He figured this is an opportune time to answer them.''

John was busy looking around the area. The walls were adorned with paintings, windows, and whatnot. The two of them began to climb the stairs of the mansion. When they were finally done, they had reached the 11th floor, the mansion's uppermost level.

''Can...we...stop...now?'' John asked, panting as he face planted into the ground.

''Yes, we've reached Master Hand's office. It's just through that door.'' Link pointed at pair of brown doors. ''He's waiting for you when your ready.'' He turned around to walk back down the stairs, leaving John alone in the hallway.

John got back up, still exhausted from walking. He gulped, since he felt he wasn't ready to meet face to face with him, especially alone. Then again he did see him the night before, and he also wanted answers. Joh sighed as he walked to the door. He stopped in front of it, and meekly knocked

''Come in...'' said Master Hand.

John slowly opened the door? Sunlight peered through a tall window to the left, illuminating the room. The office itself was big, with two bookshelves behind a desk, and plants right beside the door. He saw the hand looking at him.

''Please, take a seat.'' John walked to the desk, and sat in the chair in front of it. He noticed that Master Hand himself didn't have one. John supposed it made sense, since he floated.

''Now, I'm assuming you have some questions that I might be able to answer.''

John nodded. ''How does...everyone exist here?''

''Well, it's all thanks to the games. You humans make the games exist in reality, because their creators developed them, and gave a role with passion they exist. Every Nintendo character exists here...''

''Wait, How did we made them exist?'' John asked confused, still trying to process everything. ''And is there a chance to meet the others?

''Yes, there is a chance to meet the Nintendo characters here, like Ridley. Although I suggest you don't go near him. There's also Phoenix Wright, Porky etc. And the reason we exist is because humans play our games. We will slowly come alive as you finish the game. Luckily, a lot of humans finished the game we were assigned too. Take Earthbound for example. People slowly came to love the characters, the game, even the antagonist. The same goes for everyone else, including Fox.''

''Yes! I loved StarFox as a kid.''

''And, that's why they came alive. They exist all because of you, and all of the other people.. Heck, Wolf doesn't seem to care, but deep down he loves the fans of StarFox. He tends to get defensive when there threatened.

''So, they exist because the developers created them, and then we played them.'' Master Hand nodded.''Wait! Does that mean! All of the games we've made...they exist now!''

''Correct. Any game really, but they don't inhabit this world. This is Smash World, or better yet, Nintendo World.''

''But, why hide from us? Why protect our world?''

''If the humans from the real world find out about us, it can cause destruction.''

''That didn't answer my second question.''

''I was getting to that. We protect your world because we care about our fans, our creators. We don't want any danger to befall you. Our worlds are connected, that is why we protect your world from a far. ''

''But, If you don't have access to earth...How did you create the NDS?''

''When we were created, me and my brother, Crazy Hand, had powers like no other. After the events of Super Smash Brothers, we began to use our powers to create a portal. This, as you know, is The New Dimensional Source. We created five mythical crystals, or Smash Crystals. These are Earthenia, Mantinia, Zirconia, Diatinia and Rutinia. They were then forged into the NDS. Soon afterwards, it ended up in Earth. You know how the rest went.

''But there's another thing. I remember that Fox said something about the NDS. Having true powers that only the humans from our world could unlock. What is that power?''

''I don't even fully know myself. That's for you to find out, since you are the true owner.''

''I see...''

''Fox explained the situation to you, right?'' John nodded. ''Good, because being the owner of the NDS means it's our responsibility to protect you.''

''I know...''

''But!''John looked at him confused.''In return, your going to have to join the Smash Tournament.''

John was shocked.''WHAT?!''

''My ears are sensitive, you know!''

''You don't even have ears! Seriously though, do I have to join?!''

''Yes, you do. Your going to have to get along with the other Smashers. Besides, you need to learn how to fight in case you're ever under attack.''

John paused for a moment. ''Fine...'' he grumbled.

''Splendid! I'll give the news to the rest of the Smashers. Wait here.'' Master hand said as he floated out of the room.

John slowly sighed to himself.

* * *

 _Later..._

 **''WHAT?!''** Everyone yelled, simultaneously. Master Hand groaned to himself.

''Master Hand, You can't just let him join, while also being the NDS owner?!'' Fox yelled.

''Fox, do you not think I know the stakes! Besides, he has to learn how to brawl! If an enemy takes you all out, he would be defenseless!'' Master Hand said. Keeping up with the mob mentality, everyone glared at him.

''What are you a-saying, we're not good at our job?'' Mario said, offended.

Master Hand shook his "head" as he spoke.''No, that's not what I'm saying at all. It's just important that he know how to brawl. I know you all will do your best…"

"I won't…" Wolf muttered to himself. Fox turned his glare away from Master Hand and focused it on Wolf.

"Shut up, Wolf!"

"Make me!"

"Enough! Fox, Wolf, quit your bickering!" Master Hand yelled. Both of them fell silent, although they still gave each other death stares.

" Ahem…as I was saying…I'm sure you'll all do your best, but your going to have to let him in. He agreed to this, and so will all of you! He'll be joining missions, so he isn't defenseless!'' He paused for a moment. "Now, do you all agree to this?" A series of "Fine" and "Ok I guess" followed.

''Alright, Let's go over how this works. Now he'll have to join a category.''

''W-what do you by a category?'' Lucas asked.

''It means which game series he would join like to be associated with; If he wants to carry blasters, reflectors and what not he would join StarFox series. Or if he wants be a swords man, he would be in Fire Emblem, and so on..''

''Well, in that case he should join the F-Zero!'' Captain falcon proclaimed.

''No, He should join Earthbound!'' Ness said while Lucas nodded.

''Hey, you guys are two from the Earthbound series! he should us!'' A pink eskimo replied known as Nana.

''My sister is right!'' A blue eskimo said known as Popo.

''SHUT UP!'' Both Ness and Captain Falcon of the siblings frowned.

After several minutes of pointless arguing, Master Hand had enough.''Stop being childish! Let John decide, and whoever he sides with, everyone has to accept it!'' Master Hand shouted. Those who were in the argument frowned, but nodded. Master Hand left to see John.

''Guess that didn't go well...'' John said to himself. He had heard everything from the other room. ''Why did I agree to this?'' He looked around the area, waiting for Master Hand he was Nothing interesting expect a big TV hanging on the wall. Eventually, he heard the door open, and saw Master Hand floating toward him.

''They've accepted it. Now the only thing left is for you to choose a game series, otherwise known as a category. You basically choose the game series you want, and you get the weapons and abilities that comes with it. For example, if you pick Fire Emblem you can wield a sword or control magic. You can choose a category, then we'll discuss the rest."

The hand reached behind the desk, and grabbed a Wii remote. He turned on the TV with it. The scope pointed at "DATA BASE". John could see the names of all the Smashers, and the date they signed up. He noticed that Wolf was the last one to register in.

''I need to register your name in the database, then you can come in and out of the mansion, and have access to most of the dorms, except the girls dorms.''

''Why would I go in the girls dorm?'' John asked, but Master Hand ignored the comment. Master Hand pointed the scope at the "NEW-COMER" bar, and selected it.

It was like a registration paper.

 _Full Name:_

 _Category:_

''Alright, now fill out your full now name, and pick a category'' Master Hand explained as he handed John the Wii remote. He grabbed the Wii remote and entered his name. Now he had to pick a category. There was a list of logos, representing the different franchises. He was split between Earthbound and StarFox.

''You know what? I'll pick StarFox.'' As soon he picked the StarFox category. A voice went off from the TV.

 _''STARFOX"_ it said.

John jumped a little from hearing the voice. Master Hand laughed.

''Startled about the voice, are you? Don't worry, it happens to just about everyone.'' John aimed the remote at the a green square with the word "CONFIRM" written on it.

''Are you sure, you want to join StarFox? You can't change your category.''Master Hand asked. John nodded.

''Yes, definitely. StarFox was my childhood.'' He looked at the screen once more.

 _Full Name: John_

 _Category: STARFOX._

''Then click confirm.'' Master Hand said. John pointed the scope at the confirm square, then clicked the A button.

''Registering John in the DATA BASE Please wait...''

After a moment, the voice came up again.

''John has been added in the DATA BASE.''

''Ok, your registered in the data base as a StarFox character.''Master Hand proclaimed. ''Now, I need you to look like one. Your differently won't be wearing what you have on now.'' Master Hand looked at John's clothes. He was literally just wearing his school uniform.

''Alright, what's your idea?'' John asked.

''Maybe a jumpsuit?''

''So, what your saying, is that I should be Fox?''

''Is that what you want?''

''I don't know...' 'John trailed off into deep thought.

''Well, you could either look like a Starfox member, or you could go with Wolf's style.''

''I think I have a design of my own.'' Master Hand was intrigued to see what the boy had in mind.

''Well...?'' John asked. Master Hand stared at him oddly. With his help, as well as Fox's, they had gotten John the design he wanted.

''You have an odd way of fashion...'' Master Hand commented. The human before him wore a sliver shirt, black pants, blue jacket like Fox, but without the StarFox symbol, Finger less gloves with blue boots. ''Those boots don't fit well with your clothes...''

''It fits for me.''

''Your choice. Anyways, you got your clothes for fighting. Now you need your weapons, your play style, your attacks, idle animations and whatnot.''

''So in other words, a crap ton of stuff? Can we skip some of it?''

''Can't let you do that, StarFox.'' Master Hand teased. John rolled his eyes in response.

''Your not Wolf!'' John said, annoyed. Master Hand laughed as he left the room.

 ** _Three Hours Later…._**

John felt like he was about to lose his mind. ''How long does it take for someone to get a few weapons?'' John thought to himself. He was about to go look for Master Hand, when he saw the hand come through the door. He was holding a crateful of weapons.

''How long was that? I was waiting forever!'' John complained.

''Oh, calm down. I ordered a blaster,belt, grenades and a reflector. It only took two hours. I also too the time to upgrade your blaster, so it can be different.''

''Grenades?! What do you need grenades for?!''

''Their your specials. Now please put on your equipment.'' John felt completely unsure about this. He picked up his gear, and wrapped the black belt around his waist. Then he wrapped the holster around his right leg, attached his reflector and grenades on his belt,

''Good. Now we'll create your selecting pose, idle animation, taunts, fighting stance, victory pose, attacks and other such things.''

''Yay...this well be fun...''John said bored.

Master Hand and John were so busy preparing the latter for Brawl, that it was actually night time by the time they finished. The rest of the Smashers were still waiting in the meeting room, and were wondering just what it was they were doing. Most of them were chattering amongst themselves. Wolf on the other hand, was snoozing in a chair on it's hind legs. His feet were on the table, with crossed legs preventing him from falling.

This went on for some time, until Master Hand's voice was heard from the speaker. ''ATTENTION!'' Master Hand's voice was loud enough to startle Wolf. It turns out that this enough to lose his balance, causing him to fall on his back as the chair broke. He gave a light groan as he got stood back up.

Falco snickered. ''How are you?'' He asked, teasingly. Wolf glared at Falco.

''Oh, I feel friggin' peachy! Now, do me a favor and go die!'' Wolf growled.

A blue hedgehog named Sonic felt the need to butt into the argument. ''The world hates you, man.'' Wolf gave Sonic a death glare.''I-I mean the world loves you, man! They love you!'' Wolf rolled his eyes. They looked at the speaker as Master Hand's voice came up again.

''Now, I need the selected Smashers to come to my office…'' The Smashers stared at each other before looking back up at the speaker. ''I assure you, there is a specific reason why Now...Marth, Diddy Kong, Luigi, Lucario, Peach, Ness, Fox and Wolf, come to the office, now!'' Those who were called looked at each other, minus Wolf. He stood lazily while wearing an uninterested look.

They left the room, and took the stairs to the 11th floor. Everyone was curious about Master Hand, expect Peach, who was deciding what kind of cake to bake for John.

''What do you think this is about?'' Ness asked.

''It is about the boy.'' Lucario answered, Everyone looked at him.

''Really? How can you tell?'' Luigi asked.

''Lucario possesses Aura abilities. Have you forgotten?'' Marth replied.

''Oh...Right…I forgot…'' Luigi rubbed the back of the head.

''Is it about John's moveset or something?'' Fox asked.

''I don't care what this about, as long as I finish it! Preferably as quickly as possible!'' Wolf replied. Fox glared at him, but looked forward ignoring him.

They reached the door, and Marth knocked. ''Come in...'' Marth opened the door, as he and the rest of the Smashers entered the room.

''What's the reason for calling us up here?'' Fox asked, Master Hand looked at each of the Smashers.

''Now, I want to talk about the boy.'' Master Hand answered.

''Whatever you have to say, I don't care. I ain't got nothing to do with that kid'' Wolf said. Everyone glared at him.

''That's enough out of you Wolf! You can be a little less rude from now on, or I'll throw you in Cruel Brawl again.'' Wolf let out a grunt as he looked away.

''Now as I was saying... this is about the boy.''

''May I ask, where is he?'' Marth asked.

''He is hiding.'' Lucario replied. ''I sense him.''

''He's hiding for a good reason.'' Master Hand interjected.''I wanted to tell you that he is now an official Smasher.''

''Then where is he?'' Ness asked. Diddy Kong was looking around the dark room, but couldn't see him anywhere.

''Like I said, he's hiding in the darkness. He will reveal himself shortly.'' Master Hand replied. He floated over the light switch, and flicked it on. Everyone covered their eyes from the sudden light. Eventually, they were able to open them again. However, they still couldn't see the teenager.

''Ok, seriously, where is John?'' Fox asked.

''You can come out know!'' Master Hand called. John slowly stepped out from behind the curtain.

''H-hello...'' John said, a bit flustered. Everyone looked at him with raised eyebrows, except Master Hand. Although if he did have eyebrows, he would have followed the others in their expressions. In addition to the rest of the outfit, John now sported a wrist band on his left hand.

''...Kid...You have odd fashion choices...'' Wolf trailed off.

''Keep it to yourself!'' John replied.

''Like I care.'' Wolf said. John looked away.

''Back on the topic. I'll tell you what category he pic-''

''Did he pick Earthbound?!'' Ness interrupted.

John answered before Master Hand could speak. ''I was debating, but no.'' Ness frowned. John swore he heard something from Ness, but ignored it.

''Doesn't his attire give it away?'' Fox spoke up. Everyone gave John a good second look.

''So you picked our game?'' Wolf asked. John nodded. ''Well, whatever reason you have I don't care.''

''Im sure he didn't mean it John..'' Peach said, looking at Wolf out of the corner of her eye.

''N-no, it's okay...'' John reassured.

''Back to the main point.'' Master Hand said, grabbing everyone's attention. ''There's another reason why I called you eight here.'' Master Hand took a brief second to pause. ''I want to create a trailer for John. All eight of you will take part of it. This will take a long time to make, so after we present it, everyone go to their room immediately.'' The reactions of the Smashers of indifferent at best, and fist-clenching at worst. Not even John took it well. He was already deadbeat tired, and now he had to make a trailer for himself that he didn't even want.

 _''Haven't_ wedone _enough today?''_ John thought to himself as they went off to make the trailer.

* * *

The Next Morning...

It took the Smashers hours upon hours, but they finally finished John's trailer. Only some of the hours worth of footage was to be used in the actual trailer, while the rest was either scrapped or put in as bloopers. They had wrapped it up around 4:00 A:M, and each of them went to catch some sleep afterwards. John, having no official room, went back to sleep in the infirmary.

When the sun rose, John's eye was hit by a ray, waking him up. He turned to his other side, facing the wall. For a few minutes, he stared at it, until he heard a knock coming from the door.

''Are you awake?'' The voice asked. John sat up from the bed. He groaned, still tired from filming the trailer. The door opened, and John saw a swordsman walk with, weapon in hand. ''Hello, forgive me if I woke you up.'' He said, seeing the half-asleep John.

''No, It's okay...'' John replied as he yawned. He rubbed his eyes to try to wake himself up.

''I'm sure we haven't met. My name is Ike, fearless leader of the Griel Mercenary.''

''M-my name is John...''

''Everyone knows about you. Words spreads fast in the mansion.''

''Words spread fast? Or did someone open their big mouth?''

''Yes, Luigi was screaming down the halls ''I met a real human! His name is John!''. It was pretty entertaining. ''

'' Huh...''John trailed off, still wiped out.

''Now listen, Master Hand requested everyone to go to the command room. This includes you.'' John looked at him, frowning.

''For what?''.

''Master Hand only said. "Bring everyone, including John. I have to show everyone something." That's all I know''. John knew exactly what it was. He got off of the bed, and proceeded to follow Ike.

After leading John to the command room, they stopped in front of the door. John heard several voices chattering inside of the room.

''This is where you'll officially be meeting the Smashers. Are you ready?'' Ike asked. John gulped, but nodded. Ike opened the door as the both of the, entered the command room. Every breath John took was a deep one.

John looked at the long table where the Smashers were seated. There were about forty chairs in total. He hoped he wouldn't get noticed, but was detected right off the bat. Everyone in the command room was silent, and stared at the boy. ''U-umm...Hello?'' John said meekly. No one responded to him ''Well...It's nice to meet you all...'' he continued.

''Are sure this kid is not gonna rape us?'' Falco asked suddenly. John was taken aback.

''What?! I'm 15 Godamnit!'' John cursed.''I shouldn't even know the word!'' That when Master Hand entered the room.

''Hello, Everyone.'' Master Hand said, completely ignoring the awkward exchange. ''John, go take your seat.'' John frowned as he sat next to Kirby.''Now the reason I called everyone here is because of John. He is now an official part of the team. I, and a few of you, have taken the time to put together a trailer for him...''

''Did he choose a game series yet?!''Captain Falcon interrupted

''I'm sure he chose to be a Pokemon Trainer, instead of a racer.'' Red said.

''Are you crazy?! I'm sure he's with me!'' Sonic said, adding fuel to the fire. John stared at them, dumbfounded.

''Are they always like this?''John asked.

''You have no idea...'' Ness replied.

'Alright, that's enough out of all of you! We have an important trailer to watch. Now stop before I throw you all into Cruel Brawl!'' Everyone eyes widened, as they backed into their chairs in fright. . ''Ok, John, ready for Brawl! Remember, this is being broadcasted around Smash Town!'' Master Hand proclaimed.

''Wait what?!'' John shouted from his chair, just as the trailer started. Everyone put their fingers to their mouths in a shush except Wolf. John frowned.''This is a ball popper.''John now looked at the screen.

* * *

 _It began with Fox and Wolf fighting each other. After getting beaten up by Wolf, Fox hit the ground with a thud. Wolf howled before he charged after Fox, still on the ground. Out of nowhere, a foot burrowed itself into Wolf's face, then he was hit with two punches. To finish the combo, a kick landed on Wolf's jaw, launching him a few feet. The camera panned to fully reveal John, who was in his battle stance. It was similar to Fox's, except John didn't jump slightly. John aimed his blaster, charging it._

 _JOHN BLASTS INTO SMASH!_

 _Those words appeared on screen before John fired the blaster at Wolf, sending him out of the boundary. Cut to a scene with Marth. John pummeled Marth with several headbutts before kicking him off the stage. Marth_ recovered, _but was quickly but with two blaster shots. As he was in the air, John performed a reverse_ flipkick _meteoring, Marth down the stage._

 _Cut again to Ness and Diddy Kong. John grabbed_ Ness, _and threw him upwards. He then back kicked him out of the boundary. Diddy used his back air, sending John_ of _the stage. The monkey then jumped above, and pulled off his down air, sending John near the boundary. However, blue flames rapidly engulfed John as he charged up, yelling "Fire!". As he grabbed the ledge, John quickly did his ledge attack, tripping Diddy's. He then pulled out a grenade, and tossed it at the ground, making contact with Diddy's. The Kong used his shield, but it broke as soon the grenade exploded. Diddy slowly got up, dizzy. John approached Diddy, charging his forward smash. After a second, he released it, sending Diddy off the stage._

 _The scene changed to show Lucario. John placed a grenade on the ground, but it didn't explode. John took the time to charge his blaster, but Lucario approached, walking over the grenade. The explosive detonated as soon as he stepped over it. John did a backward jump. Lucario quickly air dodged, but John read it. He waited, before doing his back kick eliminating Lucario's stock._

 _The scene changed with Peach. John was carrying Peach, then slammed her onto the ground. He then stomped on his immobile opponent multiple times, before landing a far more powerful stomp. This sent Peach flying into the air. John quickly double jumped, performing his forward air. Peach was now near the boundary. After landing in the platform, John charged his Fire Human. He then lunged upward, carrying Peach above the stage, taking her stock._

 _The final fight scene was with Luigi. John got hit multiple times by Luigi's dash. As landed, he did his uptilt multiple times, sending Luigi off the stage. The green-clad plumber chucked a_ fire ball _at John, but the boy used his reflector. The ball of fire was sent back at Luigi, who was directly hit. John jumped, landing his down air, which sent Luigi careening down the stage. He quickly disappeared in a band of bright light._

 _"GAME!" shouted the announcer as the word appeared on_ screen _._

 _The fight paused suddenly as the screen shattered, showing the result screen. The StarFox Victory theme started to play in the background._

 _"And the winner is... John!"_

 _John faced the camera, shrugging while smirking. Luigi was clapping in the background._

 _The results screen faded to black. After a few seconds, the words "Blooper Reel" appeared on_ screen _. John had no idea Master Hand included a blooper reel. The night had been long, and there were certainly some blooper-worthy moments that took place. He began to sweat profusely and tug at his jacket out of embarrassment._

 _The reel began with the opening scene with Wolf. John did his jabs, but instead of kicking Wolf's stomach. He kicked his crouch instead. Everyone who was watching from the lobby winced, while Wolf's good eye began to twitch. He fell to the ground, his hands covering the area which had been kicked. After a moment of holding it in, Wolf howled with pain._

 _''I-I'm sorry! I-I didn't mean to kick you in the crotch!'' John said, almost in a begging tone._

 _Wolf gave him a death glare.''You better run, Kid!'' He growled with anger and pain. John took his_ advice, _and ran as the fast as he could. Wolf began to run after him, trying his best to ignore the pain._

 _''I-I'm really sorry!'' John was heard crying in the background._

 _''Do you think we should help him?'' Ness's voice said, behind the camera._

 _''Wolf will certainly kill him! I'll go after them.'' Master Hand said, as the footage cut._

 _The next scene was of John using his Fire Human. John successfully performed_ it,but _aimed diagonally. ''That the wrong direction!'' Master Hand yelled, but John couldn't hear him. He then disappeared with the light._

 _''Cut!'' Master Hand ordered. He then sighed to himself._

 _Cut to the scene when John grabbed the ledge. He went to use his ledge_ attack, _but stopped. It was strange. ''Why do I feel...hot?'' John asked himself. Diddy was using sign language to indicate danger. However, John didn't seem to take the hint._

 _''What are you doing? And why do I feel even hotter?'' John said as he looked at the rest of the group. All of them were trying to signal at him except Wolf, who was chuckling. John was still confused. He spotted Ness in the front of the group, pointing on his own hand_ then _John's. The boy knew what he meant, so he looked down at his hands._ John _eyes widen, as did the rest of his face._

 _''I'M ON FIRE! SOMEONE GET A FIRE EXTINGUISHER!'' John_ screamed, _as he started to roll on the floor. Wolf could be heard laughing hysterically._

 _''I guess I messed up...'' Master Hand admitted behind the camera._

 _''You certainly did...'' Ness commented._

 _''The kid deserved it. My crotch still hurts from what he did!'' Wolf said, still laughing._

 _''Shut up already!'' Fox said._

* * *

The footage ended, with those not in the trailer shocked. There were shouts of ''He picked them!'' here and ''Why not my series?!'' there. Wolf sighed in relief. He thought he was going to be mocked for that one blooper.

''Yes, ignore the bloopers.'' Master Hand muttered.''Anyways, Yes, John picked StarFox.''

''Seriously?!'' Most of the Smashers yelled. Master Hand slowly nodded.

''Yes, Really. John, I formally welcome you to Super Smash Brothers! Welcome to the home of Nintendo!''

* * *

 _ **Around Smash Town...**_

The citizens of Smash Town, known as Miis were laughing at the bloopers. Most of them were confused by why another Smasher was selected, but yet they were still eager to meet him. One Mii Fighter on the other hand was growling in anger.

''They brought another kid into Smash?! I could kick his butt, easy!'' The Mii Fighter complained.

''Oh, calm down, Brawler.'' A Mii said, who had a hand cannon.

''And the last time Master Hand picked a kid. You got your butt handed by him. Lucas, I think?'' Another Mii fighter added.

''Oh, shut up! That kid got lucky!'' Mii Brawler said, looking away from the group. On the other side of the room was Siyet, who was watching the trailer. He was grinning as he watched the current situation unfold.

''Look like the kid is being prin the next chapter...otected by the Smashers. This is gonna be interesting.'' Siyet muttered as he smirked. He got up, and left to do what he came for.

* * *

 _ **Featured** **in the next chapter...**_

 _''Well, well, look who it is.'' A voice said, angrily._

 _John looked to see where the source of the voice was coming from. Eventually, John spotted a Mii with gloves and an angry expression._

 _''If it isn't the new_ smasher. _'' Brawler said._

 _''O-oh...um...w-who are you?'' John asked as Brawler approached him._

 _''The name is Brawler, and you don't seem fit to become a_ Smasher. _'' Brawler said. John was confused, and a little nervous_

 _''Huh?''_

 _'' I said you are not fit to be with them! The guardians of Nintendo!''_

 _''U-um...''_

 _''Heh, scared I see...Maybe I can take you out right now. To prove your just a weak kid!''_

* * *

 _John was in his room, playing on the NDS. He didn't notice that someone had snuck through the window. A sudden sound alerted him. ''Hello?'' John asked. No one answered. He put his NDS in his pocket, as he walked around his room. ''Is anyone there?''. Suddenly, he was grabbed. He wanted to yell, but his mouth is blocked._

 _''Why hello there…''_

Beta'd by: CollinCeption


	4. Chapter IV:Exploring Smash Town

**A/N: For this story. I know Fox, and Wolf set their differences asides(Maybe?)But I wanted them to act rivalry with each other. I know they shouldn't act bitter toward each other, but that's how I made them. It does affect the story, I won't spoil. I hope you enjoy the long chapter!**

 **See ya!**

* * *

 _ **Chapter 4: Exploring The World Of Nintendo**_

After the announcement of the new Smasher, practically every Mii was excited to meet him. However, the mansion was off-limits to anyone that wasn't a Smasher. A large crowd of Mii citizens tried to rush the door open, but in vain.

''Well, looks like I've made some fans...'' John muttered to himself.

''Believe me, this happens every time a new Smasher is introduced. And if you think this crowd is a lot, you should have seen it when I was picked to join.'' Sonic said, cockily. John mostly ignored him, as he was instead listening to the gathering of Miis.

''Let us in!'' one said.

''Open the door! I want to meet the cutie!'' another chimed in.

''Let us in! I want to prove I can beat this kid, so I can join you guys!'' one threateningly yelled.

John's sweat dropped down his face. He was hearing threats, flirts, and a multitude of other things. ''U-um...'' he stuttered to himself.

''Don't listen to those fools,'' Meta-Knight said. John was bit scared of Meta-Knight, mainly because of how serious and stern he was.

''Yeah, they're trying to act tough.''Ness added.''When Lucas joined, one of them tried to fight him. Lucas ended up kicking his butt, easy.''

''I-I just got lucky...'' Lucas shyly said. Ness shook his head.

''It wasn't luck. You did well.'' Ness replied. Lucas looked away in embarrassment.

Ness looked back at John.''If your going to roam around Smash Town, keep your eyes open. Any of the Mii fighters might try to attack you.''

John eyes widened a little.''W-why?'' John asked, feeling uneasy.

''It's because they want to prove themselves. Some want to join us. Others just want to attack us.''

Suddenly Fox walked in, deciding to enter the conversation.

''He's right.'' Fox chimed in. The group of four turned around, just noticing the vulpine.

''W-why would they attack us?'' John asked, pressing the subject further.

''Well, I don't know the reason, but they hate us. Most of them are forbidden to come here for: multiple counts of treats, trying to take the Smashers down, etc cetera.'' Fox said. He paused for a moment. ''So, be sure to tell us if you plan to go outside. One of us will come with you, so you won't get kidnapped.''

''I actually wanted to go outside now,'' John admitted.

''W-well, you can't go outside, since the Mii citizens are blocking the front door.'' Lucas pointed out.

''Well, why not hang out with us while you wait for the crowd to disperse?'' Fox added. John nodded.

''I certainly won't be "hanging out". I've got better things to do with my time, like cleaning my mask.'' Meta-Knight said coldly. He didn't leave time for response, as he teleported away with his cape.

''I'd love to hang out, but I've got to teach Lucas more about fighting. Come on Lucas!'' Ness said, as he ran past Fox.

''C-coming!'' Lucas said, following suit.

Fox and John looked at the two boys, before looking back at each other.. ''Well, I'm still available.'' Fox offered. John slowly nodded. He wanted to be alone, but couldn't. Master Hand had given explicit orders that he be under supervision at all times.

''Sure.'' John said.''But where will we go?''

''I'm itching for a fight, and I wondered if you wanted to be my sparring partner for now?'' Fox asked grinning. John's face was visibly frightened.

''Why not ask Falco?'' John asked, sweating. Fox gave him a bored look.

''Falco is in no mood to fight'' he replied in an equally bored voice.

''What about the others?'' He really didn't want to fight someone.

''The rest are somewhere in the mansion. I could go and ask, but...your the closest here.''

''So, your choosing me because your lazy?'' John replied, sheepishly smirking.

Fox shot him a glare. John's glare vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

''I'm not that lazy! I'm just in no mood to look for them, and do I need to remain you that this mansion has eleven floors? And that the dorms take up four?'' Fox asked with a raised brow, John sighed.

''Alright! I'll spar with you!'' John said, defeated, Fox went back to grinning.

''Thanks. Come on, let's head to the arena.'' Fox said. He began to walk away, while John followed. The newcomer was amazed by the view of the mansion. He hadn't been on the 1st floor before, or any floor for that matter. The only floor he had been on was the 3rd, since that was where the infirmary was. Who knew what most of they were passing could be. John could ask Fox, but he decided to let it go.

Fox now lead him up to the 7th floor. Eventually, they stopped in front red door.

'We're here. What lies beneath is a sight to behold.'' Fox said in a wise tone. John looked at him, bored. Fox rolled his eyes.''You'll know what I mean when you see it!''

''Right...'' John trailed off. Fox sighed, as he opened the door. John covered his eyes, as a bright light shone into them. He felt Fox's furry hand grab his own, pulling him into the door of light. As the light dispersed, he could hear something. It sounded like...clapping? John opened his eyes, and realized Fox was right. He was looking at a cheering crowd through a blue window. The floor and ceiling were pure white. The crowd was filled with Mii Citizens of all different kinds. Some of them brought their kids, or even their pets. John could see a Mii Dog doing a backflip as it barked. John smiled nervously as he snapped back into reality. He had completely forgotten he was still being dragged.

''Woah...'' John trailed off awe. Fox chuckled as he let go of the boy's hand. He turned to John with an amused grin. ''Like the view?''

''T-this is really something!'' John said, with an amazed expression.

''Didn't I tell you this was a sight to behold?'' Fox said, still wearing that grin on his face.

''Yeah...I guess it is...'' John said, embarrassed.

''Come on, you don't want to have the fans waiting.'' Fox said as he started to walk, with John following closely behind him.

''H-hey, Fox?'' John asked they continued to walk to the middle area.

''Hmm?''

''Did Master Hand teleport these people or something?''

''I guess you can say that.'' Fox said, unsure of himself. ''Then again, I don't know the extent of Master Hand's magic.''

As they reached the middle of the area, there was another hall that John could see. The area was completely white, with the exception of the front view. There were at least thirty round tables around the room with four chairs at each table. TVs adorned the walls of the room, giving anyone sitting there a view of the fight. Lucas and Ness were the ones fighting at the moment. Ness was at 62%, while Lucas was at 102%

''Let's sit down for a moment, and watch.''Fox said, as he sat next to a blue jackal with its eyes closed. John seemed hesitant to take his seat.

' _'Do not worry,_ boy. _''_ Lucario said with telepathy. John jumped a little in shock. _''Oh, did I startle you? My apologies.''_ Lucario opened his eyes to reveal crimson pupils. _''I'm Lucario, the_ aura _Pokemon.''_ John was about to speak up, but forgot that the jackal could hear his thoughts. _''I am very aware that you know who I am. It's a habit per_ say _. Please, take a seat.''_ Lucario assisted. John nodded as he slowly sat down. _''Some of our fellow Smashers won't react be so easy to accept_ a first _impression like that...''_ John felt nervous as the Pokemon glared at him.

 _''Rest assured, I won't hurt you. Being intimidating is simply part of_ my _to our point. Do not allow that to be your first impression. You do not want everyone to think badly of you now, do you?''_ John stared at him as the jackal continued _. ''Please try and avoid acting like this the next time you encounter someone new.''_

John slowly nodded, although he still didn't quite know what Lucario was getting at.

''You understand this right?'' Fox said, entering the conversation. ''For someone like me, or Lucario here, it doesn't quite matter. But for some of the others...I'm not too sure. You might want to stop being nervous all the time, and act like yourself. Heck, I prefer a good impression too, I don't want to think anyone as badly. So just be yourself that's my advise if you want to make a good impression.''

John looked down.''I understand Fox...but you expect to get used to a situation like this in a day...I mean, I'm separated from my parents, and everyone I've ever known. I just feel a lot more comfortable if I was with someone familiar. I know I'm a fan of you Fox, but being separated from my family is just..'' John continued as he sniffed. Fox sighed.

''John, I know how it feels, but it's for your safety, as well as ours. We might disappear if we let them get their hands on you. Try and get used to us. We're like your second family here.'' Fox explained, with concern in his voice.

Lucario nodded. _''Yes, we treat each other like family.''_

''John, it's our responsibility to protect you from that enemy. We will do everything in our power to make sure you see your family again.'' Fox paused for a moment, trying to think of something to cheer John up. ''Hey, didn't you say you wanted to know me, right?'' John looked up at him before nodding. ''Then how about this...You said you had a brother right?'' John nodded again. ''Then I'll be like a big brother to you, until everything settles down.'' Fox felt somewhat uncomfortable when he said "Brother". After pausing again, he continued.

''That way, we can talk together, and do what brothers do. What do you say?'' Fox asked John, smiling sincerely.

''You don't have to if you want..but thanks...'' John muttered. Lucario darted his eyes at Fox. Fox did the same.

' _ **'You are lying...You don't really want to be his brother...''**_ Lucario telepathically said to Fox. _ **''You are not trying to hurt him, are you?''**_

' _ **'No! I'm just trying to make him feel better!''** _Fox yelled, at least in his mind. _ **''Yes, I might not be used to it, but it's our best bet!''**_

 _ **''You know your action has consequences, correct? If, John finds out...''**_

 _ **''Like** **I said, this is our best bet. I'll try to get used to it.''**_

 _ **''Fine...''**_

''Uh, guys?'' Both of them snapped, as they had forgotten a certain boy was watching them. Fox noticed John had perked up a little. He supposed he took his offer. ''Are you guys okay? You guys were just staring at each other for a while.'' John asked, confused. The two stared at each other, than back at John.

''Nothing to worry about.'' Fox said, as an announcement went off.

''GAME!'' proclaimed the announcer.

''And the winner is...''

Lucas was clapping in the background, while Ness nodded.

''…Ness!''

Eventually, the two came back into the room where the group was.

''Aww, don't worry Lucas, you'll win next time!'' Ness reassured.

''I-I don't t-think I will...'' Lucas shyly muttered. He most likely wasn't wrong either. Almost every time he had fought Ness, he had gotten his butt kicked.

''I'm sure you will.'' Ness said, as they ignored, John, Lucario, and Fox's presence. They simply walked to the hall, Fox, and John came from.

Fox looked at John, then grinned. ''So, are you ready?'' Fox asked. John gulped, as he slowly nodded ''Then click the button in front of you.'' Fox clicked a red button, installed I tot eh table. John looked down at the table, and pressed a blue button. Suddenly the TV showed the character select screen. John could see himself at the bottom of the list, preceded by Wolf. Fox clicked on his name.

''FOX VS?'' said the announcer.

John nearly jumped from the sudden announcement. He looked down and he saw Fox on the red side, performing his signature pose. John clicked his own name.

''FOX VS JOHN!'' the announcer said, before pausing a moment.

''ARE YOU READY?!''

John suddenly appeared at the blue side. He was doing his pose on the character select screen. His pose was him, standing firmly, and pointing his blaster at his opponent.

Fox looked at him.''Are you ready?'' John nodded. Fox clicked the "OK" button on the right bottom corner of the screen. John did the same. Suddenly, the stage select screen appeared. Fox moved his scope over to the Lylat Cruise stage.

''Is Lylat Cruise OK with you?''

''Sure.'' Fox nodded, as he clicked the icon. Outside the door, the crowd could be heard going into a frenzy. John looked outside of the window to see the stage transform into the one shown in the icon. They were clapping. Fox stood up, walking towards the red door. ''Well, go and get ready. Don't worry though, this will just be a friendly match between the two of us.'' Fox suddenly wore a malicious grin, as he waited for John, who was quite confused.

 _''What he means by a "friendly match", is that he will try his best to beat you.''_ John's face turned white as snow. Lucario could easily tell how frightened the boy was. ' _'Don't worry, I know you will do well.''_ John nodded nervously, as he left Lucario to meet up with Fox.

''Well, good luck.'' Fox, said walking outside the door. It was pitch black beyond the room. John gulped, as he went through the door.

* * *

 **''Lylat Cruise''** said the announcer.

John looked around his surroundings. He was in space, on a ship. It was tangling from left to right. Out of cue, an Arwing was coming by.

 **''3…''**

Fox landed on the ground.

 **''2…''**

Fox pulls of his starter stance. John did the same.

 **''1...''**

The boy took a deep breath. Time seemed to stop for a moment.

 **''GO!''**

Immediately, Fox suddenly ran up to John, attempting to kick him. John managed to avoid it by jumping out of the way. ''A little warning next time!'' John yelled.

''Wasn't the "GO" enough warning for you?'' Fox yelled backed, before jumping into the air. Before John could dodge him, he assaulted John with a drill kick and two jabs. He then sent out a flourish of kicks, but John dodged them by jumping back. To avoid any further attacks, he again rolled away. In response, Fox ran up to him and grabbed him just in time for the invincibility frame to end. Fox got a hold of the boy's collar, as he sends multiple knees to John's face. He then threw a punch at John's face, which launched a him screaming off of the stage.

John could feel his body being surrounded by blue flames, as he charged up. The human grabbed the ledge and got back up, only to see Fox using his tail to send John above him. Fox performed his up-air, landing two kicks on John. The boy was knocked further up, close to the boundaries. Fox quickly jumped up to a platform, before once again using his up-air. John was sent off the boundary's edge, as he disappeared with a bright light.

 **''OWW''** John cried as he was sent out of the boundary.

John reappeared, standing on a floating device. He heard Fox call ''Come on, John! Attack me, or you're gonna lose.''

''How about not!'' John yelled back, a bit scared. ''I don't know how to fight.''

''Didn't Master Hand give you a move set? Come on, try and fight back! We can't always protect you!'' Fox encouraged, as John took a deep breath.

''I'll t-try!'' The floating device disappeared, causing John to fall on the floor. Fox again approached with a dash attack. John readied himself to pull off some stunt, but he just simply ducked down. He turned around while Fox's kick went over his head. The boy then threw two jabs at Fox's chest. They launched Fox a small distance away from him. Fox was holding his stomach from the impact of the attack.

John took the opportunity to take out his blaster, carefully aiming at Fox. He pulled the trigger, but it didn't fire. Instead, the blaster seemed to be charging up in his hand. Master Hand did say something about his blaster being special. John kept his finger on the trigger, eager to see how powerful the shot would get. He saw Fox pull out his reflector, ready to reflect the attack. Deciding not to fire it, John flicked something on his blaster and placed it on his holster. The energy charged up was still in the gun, ready to fire.

''Are you Lucario or Samus?'' Fox jokingly asked, letting down his reflector.

''Neither! Master Hand said this blaster is unique!'' John said. He quickly pulled the gun out of the holster and fired it. Fox dodged the shot by jumping on a platform, just as quickly.

In response, John jumped up to the platform across from Fox's. The two then tried to attack each other, all while jumping from platform to platform. Fox managed to catch him while doing his up-air, with his second kick. Fox tried to do it again, but John air dodged. John reacted by using his forward air, but only the first kick landed on the vulpine. When he landed, he was on the platform next to Fox. He then performed his up-tilt, which was similar to Wolf. However, it was twice as fast. John managed to kick Fox four times with the up-tilt. He then threw his jabs sending Fox down onto the floor, back first. John followed by dropping through the platform doing a neutral air. As the kick hit Fox, John did his forward tilt, hitting the still knocked down Fox. As soon as the onslaught was over, Fox stood up. Almost immediately after, John pulled his blaster, and fired his beam point blank.

Fox cried out in pain as he was sent near the boundary. He managed to recover, but John kneed down doing his down tilt. Fox dropped down, then jumped again. The vulpine used his Illusion, damaging John. Fox jumped using his neutral air. John ran forward Fox, as he landed on the ground ,completely missing John. The human in training quickly turned around and grabbed him, resulting a pivot grab. While grabbing him, he repeatedly headbutt Fox's face. He then kicked Fox's back, sending him back to the boundary. John turned around then jumped. Fox air dodged, but John waited. Then he pulled off his back air. Fox was sent to the boundary, disappearing with a light.

 **''HUAWAH!''** Fox cried before losing a stock.

After a second, Fox appeared on the floating device. That's when the crowd began cheering, clapping, and whistling. The stadium was divided in terms of sides. Some were cheering **''FOX! FOX! FOX!''** while others called out **''JOHN! JOHN! JOHN! JOHN!''.**

Fox landed on the floor, and turned to John.''It looks like we've got the crowd up and running.'' He paused while looking around.''Let's give them a good fight! It's one on one stock right now!''

Fox dashed to John. John readied himself, expecting a dash attack. Instead, Fox grabbed him on the collar, kneeing into his head before slamming onto the ground. John got sent diagonally, and Fox followed up by running up to the suspended boy. He jumped up, and sent multiple kicks into John. Ask the last kick landed on him, John was sent higher into the air than before. Fox used his double jump, then his forward air, but the attack did not fully connect. Fox landed back on the ground, ready to make his next move.

John realized he had forgotten about his main source of defense: His grenades. While in mid air, he picked up an explosive from his utility belt. John pressed the button on top of the ball-shaped grenade, then dropped it on the platform. The grenade starting beeping as he landed next to it. Fox suddenly became wary of his moves as soon as he saw the grenade. He had only just remembered that John was a defensive Smasher. John picked up another grenade from his belt, which was his last one. The boy threw it directly at the vulpine. Fox saw the grenade coming, and quickly ducked, as it passed by his head. John quickly ran to Fox, grabbing the vulpine just in time. Instead of pummeling him, John quickly threw Fox where the grenade was. The grenade turned yellow, then red, and then exploded as Fox was sent off the stage.

John ran up to the edge, and jumped off the stage. Fox quickly reacted by using his reflector as the human made contact with it. John was stunned for a second, before Fox used his neutral air, and then Fox illusion to get back on stage. John used Fire human, but Fox interrupted it by using his back air. It proved ineffective, as John used fire human to grab the edge while hitting the vulpine multiple times. John grabbed the ledge, Fox used his FireFox. John let go of the edge and performed his forward air. The vulpine used back air, but John dodged it, as he readied to charge. Fox used his reflector to cut off the fire human as both were sent near the boundary.

Meanwhile, in Smash Mansion...

By this point in the fight, the rest of the Smashers had gone to the lobby to watch. Practically all of them, with the exception of Wolf, were gasping at the intense match. Their damage percentages were shown on a JumboTron-Like screen.

 _ **Fox:41%**_

 _ **John:74%**_

''I wonder who's going to win. This is exciting!'' Peach said with glee.

''Sheesh...Peach sure has changed since she's become a Smasher.'' Red said, pulling his cap further down.

''I a-know.'' Mario said, deadpanned. ''She would never get excited over something like a-this...''

''Would you please quiet down?'' Peach politely asked, refusing to take her eyes off of the fight. ''I'm trying to watch the game''.

Red and Mario both glanced at her, then back at each other. They shrugged, before looking back down at the fight.

At the fight...

John couldn't fire human again, his armor wasn't activated, and a grenade appeared out of nowhere on his belt. The human picked up the grenade as Fox kicked. Immediately after, John responded by using a footstool as Fox used his firefox to grab the ledge. John threw the grenade, accidentally hitting the ground below him. The following explosion caused John to sent back to the air. Fox again used his back air, hitting John before getting back to the stage. John used fire human, charging back onto the stage.

''You have a powerful recovery!'' Fox said.

''Thanks!''

''You know, we have to end this!'' Fox shouted while jumping. Still in mid-air, he started to use his drill kick.

John readied himself as Fox threw punches with a flourish of kicks. The boy managed to roll away quickly. Fox pulled out his blaster, and rapidly began to shoot it at John. The onslaught of lasers only caused the human to take a few hits of damage. Fox again used up air to catch John in a combo. John placed a grenade below the platform. If Fox landed on the grenade, it would be combo galore.

The grenade did explode, but it sent Fox the wrong way. John groaned, as he raced after Fox, only to get hit by Fox Illusion. The boy quickly drew his blaster, pulling the trigger to charge it. John again saved up its energy by holstering the gun. Fox ran up, but John quickly jumped while back air. Instead of hitting him however, he ended up landing behind the vulpine. John then did his up-tilt four times, this time landing in front of Fox. As soon as he landed on the ground, John fired his blaster at Fox. The beam caused Fox to be sent flying to the near edge of boundary, but not enough to KO. Waves of gasps could be heard coming from the crowd. Fox managed to recover back to the stage.

Suddenly, a Smash Ball appeared above the fighters. Both of them looked at it, knowing it would finish the game. Fox was the first one to chase after it. John quickly began to race him, as he watched Fox land several kicks on the ball. Despite the attack on it, the ball didn't break. John was about to make his move on it, but Fox used his back air, sending the human away from the Smash Ball. John's only hope was to fire it down. He picked up his blaster steadied, his aim and fired one clean shot. Fox watched in shock as the beam landed a direct hit on the ball, breaking it. His eyes widened as saw he the human's eyes turn yellow, and a familiar aura envelope him. Fox was preparing himself for what John had to throw at him.

 **''H-here it comes!''** John voiced echoed as he picked up his blaster, and another one taken out of nowhere. He aimed both of his blasters at Fox, charging both of them to their full extent.

 **''T-take this!''** John cried out as both blasters sent ginormous beams at Fox. The vulpine had practically no time to react, even though it felt like an eternity from his view. When the beams pierced Fox, he jolted for half a second, before flying beyond the boundary.

 **''GAME!''**

 _''And The Winner is...''_

John flipped his blaster, then swiped the air with his arms. ''That was tough!'' he called out.

 _''JOHN!''_

* * *

 _Back in the Lobby…_

Everyone's comment?'' Master Hand said, suddenly appearing in the lobby.

''Relies on instinct rather than planning his next move.,''

''Sloppy movements.''

''Panics often.''

Master Hand stared at them, dumbfounded.''Really?''

''Yes, you saw the fight. He could have used those grenades of his as a wall, but he forgot.''

''And, if he's going into a real fight...He should be calm instead of nervous.''

''Okay, okay! I get it! He needs to improve! But he did okay for his first fight!'' Master Hand retorted, just as the beginner and the veteran came out of the red door.

''I would say it's a good match, but you act out of instinct instead of improvising,'' Fox explained, unknowingly echoing the other Smashers.

''A-at least I did okay! A-nd I w-won'' John said.

''True, but you forgot about your grenades. You could have used them strategically. Master Hand did point out you're a defensive Smasher. You were directly coming into combat, instead of analyzing your opponent, or making strategic use of the shield, recovery, and rolls '' Fox explained. John hung his head. ''But, other than that, you did okay.''

''Ah...It looks like John the noob won his first fight!'' Everyone gave Master Hand a blank stare. Silence followed for a few seconds, before John decided to break it.

''Noob?!''

''Woah...Master Hand. You would never say a "noob" to a newcomer...''Link deadpanned.

''Oh, I didn't mean it like that!'' Master Hand replied, sweating. ''Anyways...Congratulations on getting your first win! Your Smash Coins are being transferred to your account!''

''Smash Coins...?''

''Smash Coins are currency here in the world of Nintendo! Look at the TV!'' John did as he said.

''250 Coins won'' read the screen. A visualization then played out of the coins being stored in John's portrait. John looked back at Mater Hand.''But...How can I spend it?''

''Oh, I completely forgot!'' Out of thin air, Master Hand summoned a trophy. It was modeled after John's character pose from the select screen.

''Here,'' Master Hand said, handing the trophy to John ''this is your trophy!''

''Uh...''John took the trophy, and began to inspect it.''I don't get it...''

''Look here.'' Master Hand summoned another item. It had a hole that seemed to fit the trophy perfectly, and there was a button on the front.''You use this if you want to buy something. Try putting your trophy in the hole.'' John gave a doubtful look but agreed. He slid the trophy into the hole. After a second, it began to shine. John backed away In shock.''Now, now it won't explode, I assure you.''

''I remember it did explode when Popo tested it...'' John slyly stared at Masted Hand bored.

''Won't explode, huh?''John deadpanned.

''Hey, it wasn't my fault! It was malfunctioning at the time! Come on, just press the button!''

John hesitantly pressed it. Instead of exploding, it displayed a hologram. ''Ha! See… it does work!'' Everybody but John was rolling their eyes. He was staring at the hologram, which was his portrait, with the number of coins in his saving. There was also a list of upgrades he could buy. John looked at the upgrades under labeled LV1. His eyes widened when he saw the prices, since most of them cost around 100,000 thousand Smash Coins.

''Uh...These prices seem a little high, don't you think?!'' John exclaimed, shocked.

''What? Helping everyone out with their missions isn't cheap! I need to find them somehow!''

John decided to change his attention to the list of items. He found only one item he could afford.

''Well, I can't buy anything except a Maximum Tomato. What does that even do?''

''Read the description.'' The hand told. John looked at the item, but hadn't noticed the description. It read: ''The Maximum Tomato is a helpful item that allows you to recover a certain percentage.''

''Certain percentage?''

''Let say for instance, that you're at fifty-six percent damage. If you eat a Maximum Tomato, you can recover about forty-three percent. ''The Hand explained. John nodded, still somewhat confused.''So, do you want to buy it?''

''No, I think I'll save my money.'' John took out his trophy, but the machine didn't stop shinning. Everyone stared in confusion. Master Hand touched the device with his index finger, nothing happened.

''Huh?'' Master Hand exclaimed.

''Why...'' He said as he slapped it.

''Won't...'' He slapped it harder.

''It...'' He slapped even harder.

''Close!'' The Hand turned into a fist, smashing the device. Electric shocks could be seen coming from the machine, as it started shining. Everyone closed their eyes as it became impossible to see anything.

 ***BOOM***

As the smoke cleared off, all of the Smashers slowly opened their eyes. Their bodies, as well as their clothes were covered in soot. As they looked around, they noticed the whole room was pitch black, thanks to the explosion. Suddenly, a groan was heard from the center of where the explosion was. Everyone directed their attention to Master Hand, who was lying on the ground. The Hand was also covered in black, even more so than the Smashers.

''Remind me to never to do that...'' Master Hand said, before passing out.

* * *

After the dust settled both figuratively and literally, most of the Smashers began to clean the room. The others were tasked to drag Master Hand back to his office. John left the group, deciding he wanted to explore the outside of Smash Mansion. When he got to the front door, he didn't hear or see the crowd that was there earlier, so he assumed they had left. He opened the door slowly, and looked around in all directions. His theory was confirmed when he didn't see anybody. The boy sighed in relief before closing the door behind him.

As he went down the stairs, John was admiring the view of Nintendo City. The streets were lined with skyscrapers galore, and the roads were filled with cars. Oddly enough, both the buildings and cars were pixelated. The city itself seemed to be flat, save for the mansion, which was in the top of a large hill. Eventually, John reached the gates, pulling them open.

John was admiring his surroundings, wondering why everything was pixelated. As he stepped on the road, he was nearly hit by a car. He retreated his foot back onto the sidewalk. He breathed in shock, looking from left to right to be sure that there were no further cars. John quickly ran to the other side of the road, which housed a fountain. John stared at the it shoot water into the sky. After a moment, he began to continue on his way, stopped when he heard a voice.''Mommy! It's that new Smasher that was just recruited!'' John turned around. He could see a boy, who was holding his mother's hands.''Can we meet him, Mommy?! Please?!''

''Of course, honey.'' The mother walked over to John, with her anxious boy holding her hand.''Excuse me!'' John sighed as he turned to greet them.

''Y-yes?'' John asked nervously.

''Oh my gosh! You are so cool!'' The boy exclaimed while bouncing around. John stared at him.

''Um...'' John was unsure what to say about the situation.

''Please don't mind him. He gets excited when meeting a Smasher.'' The mother said. ''My name is Ashley.

''M-my name is John.''John introduced.

''We know. You're the talk of the town!''

''Huh?'' John asked, confused.

''Oh, when the Smashers introduces a new recruit with a trailer, we Mii get excited'' Ashley explained.

''I-I see...'' John asked a bit flustered. He was so not used to the crowds or attention.

''Well, it was nice to meet-''

''C-can I wear your scouter?'' The boy suddenly interrupted. John and Ashley stared at him.

''Brian!'' She scolded.

''But Mom! None of the other StarFox Smashers won't let me near them!''

''Still!''

John didn't want to give his silver scouter away. ''Maybe someday...It's my equipment.'' Brian began to pout.

''B-but...''

''Brian!''

''Fine...'' Brian said, admitting defeat.

The mother turned to John. ''I'm really sorry about this...''

John shook his head. ''No, it's fine...I should be going now.''

''Okay. Again, it was nice meeting you!''

''You too!'' John began to walk the other way, wanting to see more of the city.

Back In The Mansion…

All of the furniture had been replaced, and the room had been dusted top to bottom. It looked as if the explosion had never happened. Link, Mario, and Fox leaned their brooms on the wall as they sighed.

''That took a while...'' Red said as he sat down on a white chair he had just brought down. He had every right to be exhausted, as he has carried dozens of chairs up from the mansion's basement. tired from carrying the chairs.

Wolf was sitting on the floor, panting like the others. He had been assigned to carry tables with Donkey Kong, because both of them were quite strong. ''What's wrong Wolf? You tired? Old age catching up?'' Falco said in his signature mocking tone. Wolf glared up at him.

''Shut up, Bird Brain! I don't see you carrying tables non-stop!''

 _''Forgive us Wolf, but your strength was needed to carry the_ tables. _''_ Lucario replied. Wolf switched his gaze over to Lucario.

''And where were you?!'' Wolf angrily asked.

Lucario stared at him, still psychically communicating _''Forgive me, but I was dragging Master Hand back to his office.''_ Wolf grunted in response.

''Well everything seems to be done.'' Marth proclaimed.

''Yeah, let's go and rest up...'' Fox said. With that comment, everyone began to get up and leave

 _''Wait...Someone is missing...''_ Lucario said. Everyone stopped, and looked at the Pokemon.

''Who?'' Pit asked.

 _''John...''_ There was silence throughout the room now.

''Your kidding right?'' Captain Falcon asked. Lucario shook his head.

''He didn't just walk out on us!'' Fox exclaimed angrily.''Maybe he still here!''

Lucario shook his head again _''I checked already...I did not sense his Aura, at least inside_ of _the mansion. He must have left when we were cleaning.''_

Fox had an expression of disappointment mixed with anger. ''He knows he shouldn't walk anywhere alone, when he can be kidnapped at any time!''

''Getting angry won't solve anything! We should calm down, and think!'' Ike said. Fox frowned.

''As much I don't care about the kid, we should find him.'' Wolf said.

Fox was slightly off put by his comment. Usually, Wolf would usually be the last one to say anything in a situation like this. And even when he did say something, it was usually sarcastic.

''Alright then, what's the plan?'' Fox said, deciding not to question his rival.

''Isn't simple? We split up and look for him! Without the Hand, we can't use the computers in the command room to track him!'' Wolf angrily replied. Most of them stared at him with shock and fear. Half of that was due in part with his extreme anger. The other half was because of how concerned he seemed.

''Wolf, that's a bit unlike you to worry.'' Zelda said. Wolf responded by glaring at her.

''What are you talking about?'' Wolf asked. He was confused, and still teaming with the anger.

''We can talk about that later. First, we need to find the boy!" Link said urgently.

Meanwhile…

John decided to enter a grocery store. As soon as he stepped inside, he saw the wiles lined with shoppers. He didn't want to be surrounded in attention, so he decided to leave before he was noticed. Upon leaving, he darted across the street to a clothing store, which seemed to less crowded. He peaked into the window to get a closer look. Inside, John noticed the rows of clothes. Each one was labeled. The first rows held generic Mii clothes, for men women, and children. The rest displayed costumes that belonged to a certain franchise. There was a Pokemon row, an Earthbound row, etc.

John stepped away from. The window, and made his way to the door. While walking there, he noticed a banner that was hanging on the other window. It depicted him, in his character select pose. It read: ''25% discount on John clothes! The new StarFox Smasher!''

''They've already made merchandise?!'' John thought to himself. He just had to see them for himself. So he went inside the store, and walked to the StarFox section. On the walls of the row, he could see perfect replicas of the clothes worn be the StarFox Smashers. There was Fox's outfit with the scouter, Falco's near identical getup, and Wolf's attire, eye patch and all. At the end of the row, John could see his clothes. He walked over there, and quickly examined it. It was quite a resemblance. He ran his hand down the jacket. With the exception of the sale tag, it was nearly the same texture as his own.

''Mom, look!'' A teenage girl called out. She pointed a finger at John. John could tell what was going on. He quickly left the section, trying not to get any attention. As he exited the row, John was stopped by a Mii citizen.

''Is s-something wrong, s-sir?'' John asked, sweating. The Mii inspected him top to bottom.

''Hey...Aren't you that new Smasher, who's been going about the city?''The Mii asked. John stared at him nervously.

''I don't know what you're talking about...'' John said, trying not to expose himself. He looked to his right, and could see the same poster that had been in the window. John sweated more. The Mii looked at the poster that John was looking at. He quickly compared their clothes and likeness.

''You are!'' The Mii citizen exclaimed. John had practically just died on the inside. ''Oh, Crap...'' He thought to himself.

''Look, sir...I need to go...'' John said, in an effort to escape. He noticed that he was dragging attention from the other shoppers.

''IT'S HIM!'' All the citizens said at the same time. In an instant, they all rushed to the "noob Smasher" and surrounded him, preventing escape. They began to take pictures, beg for autographs, etc. He didn't time to deal with this. John barley managed to squeeze his way through the fighting crowd. As he was reaching the end of it, he tripped, and the floor with a thud. He shook his head before standing up. Apparently the crowd still believed he was in there, somewhere. Now was his chance to leave. He walked out onto the city street, and sighed.

''I need to go back, before they start to worry.'' He said as he made his way back to the mansion, hoping he wouldn't be noticed. As John was walking, he accidentally bumped into a figure.''Sorry!'' John turned behind him to apologize, but didn't see anything. Had he bumped into a cheetah? John rubbed his eyes to be sure, but still couldn't see anyone. Suddenly, he heard a voice.

''Well, well, look who it is.'' The voice said with anger.

John looked where the source of the voice was coming from. He spotted a Mii wearing gloves and a clenched up face.

''If it isn't the new smasher.'' The Mii said.

''O-oh...um...w-who are you?'' John asked as the aggravated citizen approached him.

''The name is Brawler, and you don't seem fit to become a Smasher.'' John was confused, and a little nervous.

''Huh?''

''I said you are not fit to be with them! The guardians of Nintendo!''

''U-um...''

''Heh, scared I see...Maybe I can take you out now. To prove you're just a weak kid!'' Brawler said as he charged at John, ready to punch him.

In an act of instinct, John covered himself to block punch. Just then, a power shield came on, preventing the punch.''What the?!'' Brawler said in shock. John opened his eyes, he noticed that he was surrounded by a red bubble. Both of them were shocked ''Of course! You're a Smasher!'' Brawler said as he continued to throw punch after punch at the red bubble. He noticed the shield was getting smaller and smaller.

John decided to roll. As Brawl was ready to punch the shield, John rolled front as Brawler jumped. John rolled underneath. Brawler's eyes widened as John stood up after the roll. Brawler looked behind him as John threw a punch, then another, then a kick on the face. Brawler hit the floor with a thud, John took out his blaster in his fighting stance. Brawler got back up.''Heh, tough move kid!'' The fight seemed like it was going to escalate, until they were interrupted.

''HIYAH!'' cried a voice as a grizzled boot kicked Brawler in the face. Once again, Brawler hit the ground with a thud. As he slowly opened his eyes, he could make out Wolf standing in front of John. ''Don't you go near the kid!'' The lupine shouted. John stared in shock as the brawler got up. As he did so, the rest of the Smashers began to appear behind the aggressive Lupine.

''Damn Smashers…'' Brawler muttered under his breath.

 _''Brawler, you pathetic fool! How many times are you going to attack us!?''_ Lucario questioned.

''Until I prove that we don't need you!'' Brawler replied, shouting.

 _''It does not matter if you need us or not, you have no right to attack the boy!''_

''Like I care!''

Fox's eyes narrowed. ''Just leave Brawler, you're outnumbered!''

Brawler growled as he took off running. Every single Smasher made sure he wasn't coming back, before they looked at John, angrily. John looked down in shame. He had the feeling that they were going to have a long talk with him when they got back.

* * *

 _Inside Smash Mansion…_

''In today's news,'' A Mii said. He was wearing glasses with a suit, and was holding a sheet of paper ''the new Smasher, known to be John of StarFox has recently been the talk of our beloved Smash town! Footage has arisen of the recruit speaking with some a boy and his mother.'' The screen showed John interacting with Ashley, and Brian. ''Interactions like this, as you know, are extremely ra-'' The voice was cut off when Fox turned off the TV. Everyone in the command room looked at John. In response, he simply looked down in embarrassment.

''John, didn't Master Hand specifically tell you to stay with us! And don't you know you shouldn't walk outside of the mansion, especially alone! You could've been kidnapped!'' Fox yelled. John winced. It's not like he could be surprised, he knew this was coming as soon as Brawler was defeated.

''Fox is correct, John. You shouldn't be walking alone without our supervision!'' Zelda lightly scolded.

''S-sorry...I was curio-''

''STILL!'' Wolf yelled, louder than Fox. Like almost anything Wolf said, it frightened John.

''Wolf, calm down. Your scaring him.'' Peach stepped up. Wolf growled.

''If the kid wants to be a part of the team, he's gonna have to think about his actions!'' Everyone watched Wolf stomp his way to the door, kicking it as he exited the room. As he reached the other side, he slammed it behind him. While most of the Smashers simply watched in awe at the spectacle, John once again winced.

Fox sighed as he turned back to John. ''I know, you were curious about Smash town, but we've got to set ground rules. It's not a punishment, but for your safety. Alright?''John hung his head. It's like the punishment from his parents.''

''If you decide to go out, let one of us know. I'm sure someone will accompany you'' Marth said.

''And don't sneak out like you did this time. If it weren't for Lucario's little psychic tricks, we wouldn't have even known you were gone.'' Falco said. Lucario gave no response besides a slight head nod.

''O-okay...I'm sorry I made you guys worry.''

''It's okay, John. No one's mad at you. We were just worried is all.'' Peach said, holding her signature pink parasol.

''No one expect for Captain Eyepatch over there.'' Falco said, gesturing towards the door. ''Man, you should have seen him when we found out you were missing. He was flipping his sh-''

''Hey Falco, can we keep this focused on what's at hand?'' Fox interrupted. ''I'd appreciate it.''

Falco lazily threw his hands up in a surrender pose, then retreated back into his chair.

''Anyways…'' Fox continued, attempting to get back on track. ''Were only looking out for your safety. As it is, what you did isn't really a big deal. So don't sweat it, ok?''

''Ok...'' John looked away, a bit embarrassed. All of the Smashers began to ease up and show slight smiles. John looked back up at the group, and gave a small smile himself.

After a moment of silence, Link spoke up. ''Is anyone else feeling famished? It's about time we all ate.'' If anyone wasn't hungry before, they certainly were now. All of the Smashers began to get out of their seats and leave the command room. John slowly got up following the others. As they walked throughout the halls of the mansion, he thought the shield he had summoned.

''Hey, um Link?'' John asked.

''Yes?'' Link said.

''When you guys found me with Brawler, what was that shield that appeared when I was defending myself?''

''Did Master Hand not tell you?'' Link asked. John shook his head.''Master Hand always explains what that is to every new fighter. How did he forget?'' John shrugged. ''Well, what you summoned was what's known as a guard.''

''A guard?''

''Guard is an ability that every Smasher has. It's a shield that protects you from harm'' Zelda interjected.

''When Brawler was attacking my shield, it was shrinking the as I held it. What was that for?''

''That's because it cannot be held forever. It will shrink, depending on the amount of time passed and the amount of hits it receives. When it runs out, it will break, causing you to be dizzy. During this time, you're open for attack.'' Marth explained. ''That shield is important, it is mostly used in a Brawl or a mission.''

''Brawl...wait a minute. Fox, when we were fighting, you weren't using the shield. Why didn't you?'' Fox looked at him, with a smirk on his face.

''I was going easy on you. It was your first fight after all. Did you expect me to crush you? That's a bit unfair.'' John looked at him, shocked.

''That was going easy on me?! It looked like you were going all out!'' John exclaimed. Fox chuckled. ''It supposed it didn't look like it, but I was actually going easy on you,''Fox said, still chucking. John frowned.

For hours, no one really did anything besides meander around. Since Master Hand was still unconscious, no matches could be held, nor could missions be organized. As the sun was setting, John began to help Mr. Game and Watch and Peach with dinner. It certainly wasn't an easy task, due to the number of mouths that had to be fed. After some time, Mr. Game and Watch placed another tray of delicious food on the counter. John took the last tray, and placed it on the table. The dining room had several tables with about three or four chairs at each. It was set up like a school cafeteria in a way. Since John had become a Smasher, one of the tables was given an extra chair. As Mr. Game and Watch and John placed the last trays of food on the counter, Peach signaled everyone down with an intercom microphone.

''So, John what do you think of Smash so far?'' Peach asked as she sat down in her chair. She sat at a table near the center of the room with Mario, Luigi, and Bowser. Bowser was always trying to change where he sat, but Master Hand denied him every time.

''Well...Yeah, I guess?'' John replied, unsure of himself.

''I know you aren't comfortable yet, but we're all family here! We help each other until the end! Don't worry, John. After this is all over with, you will get to see your family at home!'' Peach said, trying to cheer the boy up. John showed a small smile. Suddenly, the dining room door opened up. All of the Smashers poured out of it, and began to take their seats. John could see Master Hand floating in with them.

''Aw...I'm never doing that again...'' Master Hand said, as he floated to the middle of the room. John politely waved goodbye to Peach, and walked over to his assigned table and chair. The nameplate on his chair made his placement official. John noticed that he was sitting with Meta Knight, Lucario, and someone he didn't know. He struck out to John in particular, because he looked incredibly realistic, as well as gritty.

Master Hand reached the middle of the room, and scoffed, trying to call attention. Since everyone was chatting amongst themselves, the Hand's scoff was lost in the noise. After a few seconds of waiting, he blurted out a loud ''Ahem!''. All of the heads in the room now turned to face Master Hand. ''Thank you for your attention. As you all know, a newcomer has arrived! His name is John, and he's from the real world!''

''We knew that you dork.'' Red replied. Master Hand made a gesture equivalent to an eye roll.

''Whatever. Anyways, John is in danger, and I entrust all of you to keep him safe.'' Most of the Smashers frowned.

''Yeah, he could walk out of the mansion or something...'' Ness muttered.

''What!?'' Master Hand asked, confused. Most of the Smashers gasped. Before he could say anything else, Luigi put his hand over Ness's mouth.

''Nothing!'' Luigi shouted, sweating. Master Hand stared at Luigi, then looked around at all of the smashers. Everyone just shrugged.

''Alright...'' The Hand said, still confused and partially suspicious. ''Now, sorry to keep you all waiting. You can continue to eat. When you are done, go to your respective rooms! Except for John!'' John jolted his head up and stared at Master Hand.'' You are to come to my office after dinner. Understand?'' John nodded.''Splendid! Now go on and enjoy the rest of your evening!'' When he was finished speaking, Master Hand floated out of the door, and back upstairs.

John looked back down at his food. ''What could Master Hand possibly want to talk to me about?'' He thought to himself.

 _''Do not worry. You are not in trouble.''_ Lucario telepathically replied as he chewed his food. _''He simply wants to discuss your living space. Now go on and eat your food before it gets cold.''_

 _''_ Hey, Kid.'' Said the stranger. John stared him as he spoke. .''I don't believe we've met. The names Snake.''

''Oh...It's nice to meet you! My name is John.''

''So, from the real world?''

''Yeah! Someone, or something wants to kidnap and or kill me, so I'm staying here for the type being!'' John replied with a sheepish smile.

''Wish I could say I've never been in your shoes. Although, maybe I've only experienced the first part.'' Snake said, now eating his food.

''Ok...?'' John said, awkwardly. He then went to eating his own food, which was a steak burger.

As dinner ended, John walked out of the room and up the flights of stairs. He reached the thirteenth floor, and opened the door to Master Hand's office. John then made his way to the chair in front of the desk, and took his seat. Master Hand turned around, and met John's eyes with his fingers.

''The reason I called you here is very simple. I'd like to go over some rules, as well as your assigned room.'' Master Hand said. ''Rule number one: Be respectful to your elder Smashers like Snake, Link, Fox.''

''Elders? Fox isn't eighty or anything, he's thirty.''

''You know what I mean! Be respectful to Smashers that are older than you!'' Master Hand said. ''Anyways, rule number two: Be competitive in tournaments and other fights. As a Smasher, you must try your best.''

''O-ok...''

''Rule number three: Smashers fifteen or below must sleep an hour earlier than everyone else. Since everyone goes to bed at ten, you go to sleep at nine.''

''Really?...''

''Yes really. Rule number four: Don't go into any of the girl's dorms.''

''Like I'd ever do that.''

''Hey, you never know. It's just a precaution. Rule number five: Don't break anything around the mansion. It costs a lot of Smash coins to install a new painting.''

''OK, I'll make sure to be careful.''

''Rule number six: Whenever there is danger around Smash town or during a mission, you must participate.'' John cringed for a moment, dreading when he'd have to follow through with that.

''And finally, this rule applies to you. Rule number seven: Don't go anywhere alone. Someone has to be in your range. I'll assign a Smasher to be with you if you plan on going somewhere. Now as for your room...I have to discuss it with the rest of the Smashers. For now however, you are assigned to the second floor dorms. The room should have your name on it.''

''But, I don't know where the dorm is...''

''Oh, It's easy. Go to the first floor, then turn left. You should find yourself at the dorm lobby'' Master Hand instructed. John nodded, slightly confused. ''Good, You are dismissed.'' John got up, left Master Hands office, and went down the stairs to the first floor. Unsure of himself, he turned left, as instructed. He walked down the hallway, wondering if he had gone the wrong way. John felt relived when he reached a double door reading "Boys Dorm". He slowly opened it.

John looked around the lobby of the dorm. It seemed ordinary enough. There were chairs, tables, a rug, the usual. As he looked around the room, he noticed the staircase towards the back of the room. John went up the stairs, and arrived on the second floor. He began to walk down the hallway that lay before him. Decorations lined the walls, like the rest of mansion. John reached the first door on his left, and read the nameplate. It read: "Ness and Lucas.'' John went to knock, but withdrew at the last second, realizing they would be asleep at this time. John walked further down the hallway. He could see all the rooms with names assigned to most of them. By the time he reached near the end of the hall, John was seriously doubting he had gone the right way. He got to the end of the hall, reviewing two more hallways, going left and right.

John looked at the last door before the split. The nameplate had his name on it. John frowned, realizing he was far away from anybody else. His closest neighbor was Kirby, but his room was three doors away from his. After that was Link, who was two rooms away from Kirby.

John opened the door to his room. It housed two beds, a drawer on each bedside with a lamp on top, several plants, two chairs near a window, and another door that probably led to the bathroom. The boy flipped the light switch on so he could see clearer. He sighed in exhaustion as he sat on the white bed. After all, he had just traveled down thirteen flights of stairs, and traversed half of the mansion just to get to his room. He lied on the bed in comfort, until a sudden lightning strike jolted him out of it. John walked over to the window. It was raining heavily.

He sighed to himself as he pulled out his NDS, and turned it on. It surprised him it still was working. The game started up, and he began to play it. He walked back to the bed, and sat on it, back to the window. If it wasn't for the game he was playing, he would have noticed the figure picking the window lock. After successfully breaking it, the figure silently snuck into the room. It was about to come up behind John, when he broke his attention from the game. John had been alerted by the sounds of rain drops hitting the floor. When he was alerted, the figure crept out of sight. John stood up, put the NDS in his pocket, and walked over to the window. ''Wait a minute…The window wasn't open when I go-'' He was suddenly cut off when the figure grabbed him. John wanted to yell, but his mouth was blocked.

''Why hello there.'' A voice said. John looked up, and saw the hooded figure which had crept into his room. He couldn't tell if it was the thing he had seen on Earth, or some other hooded figure who wanted to kidnap him.

''You shouldn't have let your guard down...Oh, but I forgot you're just a kid. You know nothing except video games.'' The hooded figure taunted. ''Now I will take that device, and kidnap you.'' John's eyes widened. The figure slowly opened the zipper of his pocket, and began to slowly take the NDS out from it. But before it could, John quickly and hardly stomped his foot. The figure yelped as he dropped the NDS, and his grip on John. The boy quickly snatched the NDS off of the floor, and began to run towards the door. After he got back up, the figure jumped at him. John saw this and ducked out of instinct, causing his attacker to crash into the wall. He looked at the figure to make sure he was down, and then quickly busted through the door. ''HELP!'' he cried.

John's voice echoed through the halls, waking up almost everyone in the boy's dorm. ''What was that?!'' Fox asked immediately after he was jolted awake. The voice came again.

''SOMEONE HELP!'' Fox instantly recognized the voice.''It's, John!'' Fox glanced at Wolf, who was trying to go back to sleep. ''Wolf! Get your ass up! John is in trouble!'' Fox jumped out of bed, and began to put his boots as fast as possible. Wolf still refused to get up, even though he heard the cries for help.

''I'm not the kid's babysitter!'' Wolf replied, annoyed.

''Well, Master Hand's probably going to put you through multiple rounds of Cruel Smash, if you don't protect John!'' Fox yelled out as he left the room, still in sleepwear.

''Grr...Fine!'' Wolf said as he got up. He put on his boots, grumbling to himself. By the time he left the doorway, Fox was already at the other end of the hallway.

As John ran down the stairs, in an attempt to get away, the unknown figure jumped off a wall, and landed in front of him.

''You're not going anywhere! I'm kidnapping you, and I'll get my reward!'' John began to back away. He frantically looked around him, hoping to find an escape route. Unfortunately, none seemed to be in sight. Suddenly, he remembered his grenades. John quickly snatched an explosive from his holster, as he tossed it in contact mode.

 ***BOOM!***

As the spoke disappeared, it revealed the figure behind the hood. It was a Mii. He muttered something from under his breath, and ran out of the dorms as quickly as he could.

* * *

Meanwhile…

 ***BOOM!***

What was that?!'' Marth asked, who was in sleepwear.

''I don't know! We have to find the kid before he gets captured.'' Snake said. The small crowd of Smashers behind him nodded.''Let's check out where that explosion came from.'' Everyone ran to where the loud bang came from. When they arrived at the lobby, they saw Mii covered in black soot.

''Uh...I guess John used his grenades on him?'' Ike asked Marth, nodded.

''It has to be, John is the only one with explosions.'' Marth replied.

''C'mon lets see, who this guy is.''

Mario and Fox went over to the smoked Mii. As they turned the body, they saw its face, complete with swirly eyes. ''I guess John's grenades did a number on him...''

''Seems a little overkill for a Mii…'' Falco said.

 _''Hmm...''_ Lucario was sensing multiple unknown figures throughout the mansion.

''What do you see?'' Marth asked.

' _'There are three other Mii besides this one...''_

''And the kid?'' Falco asked.

 _''Hiding inside of the infirmary...''_

''Ok, one of us will have to report to Master Hand!'' Fox said. Lucario immediately raised his paw.

 _''I will go. While I retrieve Master Hand, some of you keep_ you _watch on this Mii. Meanwhile, the rest of you need to find John, and protect him.''_ Lucario explained. Everyone liked the idea, and nodded in approval. Lucario ran out of the dorm to get Master Hand.

''As of right now, we got to split up! Fox, Sonic, since your agile enough, you can get to him quicker than the rest of us.'' Marth explained.

''I'll get to him in no time!'' Sonic said, in some sort of cheerful manner. Immediately after saying this, he ran out of the dorm, trailing dust behind him. Fox began to follow him shortly after.

''Now, the rest of us. We wait.''

* * *

John was hiding behind a curtain in the corner of the infirmary. His boots were the only things in sight, but the managed to blend in with the shadows. Of course, being scared to no ends, his boots were shaking uncontrollably. ''Okay...just calm down…Maybe I should come out now…It was probably just one person...'' John was ready to leave his hiding spot, when he heard something talking. ''Woah! Look at all these Smash coins! These guys are so rich!'' A female voice cheerfully said. It seemed to be coming from outside of the room.

''I know right! Don't lose you head about it, we still have to wait for Lens!'' A second voice said. John could tell it was male.

''He always seems to be late! How long does it take to kidnap some weak kid?'' The first voice said, clearly annoyed.

''Oh, calm down! Maybe he just hasn't found him yet.'' A third voice said. It paused for a moment before continuing ''Once we deliver the kid to that Siyet guy, we'll be even richer than the Smashers!'' The voice said, filled with greed. Suddenly, it began to laugh like a little girl afterwards, even though it belonged to a male.

''Hey, we haven't checked the infirmary yet!'' The first voice said. John's heart began to pound in fear.

''What is there to steal in an infirmary?'' The third voice asked.

''I don't know, maybe some valuable medicine...?''

''We might as well check it while we're waiting for Lens.'' The first voice said.

''I guess...''

As John heard the door open, he could see the figures walk in through the curtain. ''As expected. Nothing here but ordinary medicine.''

''At least we checked it out!''

Just as the three were about to leave, John's blaster slipped out of his holster.

*Clunk*

Both John and the three figures froze still when they heard the sound.

''Wait...Someone is here...''

John went to pick up the blaster, but realized the curtain would move if he did. So he sat there, making sure not to move. Since he was raked with fear, this wasn't hard for him to pull off.

''Take out your weapons. It might be a Smasher...'' John saw them taking out what looked to be a knife. He clenched up further in fear, sweating profusely.

As the figures were searching the infirmary, one of them noticed an odd curtain in the corner.

''Guys...I think that curtain is bigger than the rest.'' The third voice said, pointing to John's location. ''What have I done, what have I done? Why did I think it was a good idea to hide in a curtain?!'' John thought to himself.

''You think someone is there?'' The female voice asked.

''Well, look at it! Do you see any of the others bulging out?!'' The third voice said.

''Well, there's only one way to find out...'' The second voice said as it approached the curtain. John noticed as the figure came closer that it was a Mii. He supposed the other two were as well, but he also supposed that didn't matter, since they all had knives. Just as the Mii was about to open the curtain, his survival instincts kicked in. He grabbed his blaster and ran out of the curtain, away from the thieves. John then faced them, blaster at the ready. ''Wait, it's that kid! The one that Siyet told us to kidnap!'' One of the Miis exclaimed.

''I guess you escaped Lens, but you ain't getting away from us! There's no way I'm not getting paid for this!'' A black hair Mii said. As the three Miis started to approach him, John slowly backed away. He tried to make a break for it out of the infirmary. ''Oh, I don't think so!'' The female Mii said as she threw her knife. John quickly ducked as the knife passed over his head. As he got back up, he could see the female Mii pull out another knife.

The three Miis once again began to envelope the boy. In an act of fear and instinct, John formed a ball with his body.

''Are you serious?! The kids a Smasher, and yet he won't even fight back?!'' The black hair Mii said, laughing in between words. ''Man, how come Lens couldn't take him?! This is the easiest job I've ever had to do!''

''Think again!'' A familiar voice shouted as a blaster went off. The Mii stopped laying as the laser whizzed past his face. The attackers looked towards the entrance of the infirmary, and saw Fox aiming his blaster at them.

''Sonic, NOW!'' Fox shouted. Just then Sonic ran at full speed towards the corner. He picked up the still petrified John, and ran back to Fox. ''Are you okay?'' Fox asked the boy, but John was frozen like a statue. Fox looked concern as he and Sonic glanced at each other. They both return their attention to the thugs before them.

''I don't know what you did to John, but I promise you pain because of it!'' Fox said as he put his blaster back into its holster. He then ran up to the thugs, and beat them with all his might. Sonic stood back, simply watching the one-sided fight. After a few seconds, Sonic switched his paid attention back to John, who he had placed near the door.

''Hey buddy, you don't have be scared anymore...you're safe.'' Sonic said, trying to comfort the kid. No reaction. The hedgehog decided to try loosening up the situation. He considered his ability to make people a little more chill his forte, besides speed of course. ''Hey, you see Fox over there, showing those guys what for? That'll teach 'em for messing with us, won't it?'' Sonic turned back to John. The boy stared off into space with a thousand-yard stare. Sonic sighed, and looked at John with a worried face.

After Fox had easily taken down the thugs, they, as well as the other Mii, were taken to the command room. Every Smasher was either gathered around John, who was still frozen, or Fox'x interrogation if the Miis.

''What happened to him?'' Toon Link asked Fox, pointing to the boy in the corner.

''I don't know…We found him like this in the infirmary. Hasn't moved, spoken, or even blinked since. I checked afterwards to make sure he even had a pulse.'' Fox said, thinking about how John could be in shell-shock for so long.

''Now talk, you filthy bitch!'' Wolf shouted at one of the Miis. He had either forgotten that kids were in the room, or he just didn't care. Most of the kids were confused by what the word meant. Toon Link turned again to Fox as Wolf continued to shout.

''Hey, Fox what does b-'' He tried to say, but was cut off.

''Don't say that word, Toon!'' Fox nervously said. Toon Link was more confused than he was beforehand.

''What? B-''

''Yes! The word that starts with a B!''

''Ok...?'' Toon Link replied, confused and unsure. Fox sighed in relief. He could hear Wolf in the background, seemingly at his angriest.

''I said TALK! Do you want me to grind my claws into your face?!'' Wolf threatened them while also curving his claws inches away from them. Their faces turned white as the idea Wolf's razor sharp claws cutting them filled their thoughts.

''AHHHH! OK, WE'll TALK! PLEASE DON'T HURT US!'' They begged in terror.

''Then start talking!'' Wolf said, still bright red with rage. ''Who put you up to this?! Why would they want they kid?!''

''We were promised great rewards if we kidnapped the kid! Siyet told us that the kid harbors great power, and is the true owner of the NDS!''

''Wait, who is this Siyet?'' Ike asked, injecting himself into the interrogation.

''We don't know!'' Most of them said, looking doubtful.

 _''They are not lying...I scanned their auras. There was no sign that they lied.''_ Lucario said, confirming their statements. The Miis were briefly confused, since they weren't used to outside voices in their heads. They got a hold of the situation when they noticed everyone looking at Lucario.

''So, there telling the truth...'' Master Hand muttered. ''What else do they know?''

''Spit it out!'' Wolf demanded.

''Nothing else! We promise!'' The Miis said desperately. They all looked to Lucario for any signs that they were lying. Again the Aura Pokemon shook his head, an indication that none of them were lying. After a moment, the Smashers began to shift their attention over to John. Their faces began to show signs of worry.

"From now on, John should be under someone's supervision all times. This little incident here nearly got him kidnapped. And until we capture this Siyet figure, John is in danger.'' Master Hand proclaimed. He paused for a moment, expecting a response from the boy, seeing as this concerned him. However, John didn't budge from his traumatized state.

''Then what's the plan?'' Snake asked. ''We can't always be in the same area as the kid.''

''It's simple. I assign one of you to keep guard on John when no one else is around, and to be his roommate.'' Master Hand explained. ''Now, who here has a roommate they'd love to get away from? If no one volunteers, I'll pick randomly.''

''Wait, won't Siyet come after us?'' Falco asked. Everyone else nodded in agreement.

''No, I'm positive they're only after John and the NDS.'' Master Hand said, very sure about his theory. ''From now on, we all have to be on high alert, and we have to have tight security. This includes keeping John protected at all times. These four thugs here nearly kidnapped John. No offense to you, O'Donnell.'' Master Hand said to Wolf. The Hand had noticed Wolf grunting at the word "thug". He paused for a moment, before continuing. ''Now, who volunteers to be his protector, at least until everything's settled down?''

Everyone immediately raised their hands, with the exception of Wolf. ''Alright then, it's decided. Wolf, I'm placing you in charge of this task. It is of the utmost importance.'' Wolf eyes widened in shock, then quickly narrowed in anger. Everyone who raised their hands stared at looked at Master a Hand, then back at Wolf.

''What's the point in asking if your just going to choose?'' Nana asked.

''Simple. You see, I actually just wanted Wolf to be his protector.'' Master Hand said. Nana sighed to herself. She had more questions than answers, but she chose not to ask any of them.

''Why me?'' Wolf asked, growling.

''Well, you haven't been that helpful, and you need to pay back the damage you've done. If you don't agree, you can make up your dues by fighting in fifty rounds of Cruel Brawl. Back to back, of course.'' Master Hand said. Wolf once again growled.

''You son of a bitch...'' Wolf muttered under his breath. After sighing, he spoke up. ''Fine! I better get paid good money for this!''

''Oh, you will be!''

Wolf raised his eyebrow, suddenly interested. ''How much are we talking?''

''1,000 Smash Coins.'' Wolf glared at the hand. Master Hand stared back, confused. ''What?''

''You call that good money?'' Wolf snarled.

''Hey! That's an okay amount! Fine, 2,000!''

Wolf narrowed his eyes with a growl, showing an angry expression.

''3,000? 5,000? 25,000?! 50,000! How much do you want?''

''Above 500,000!'' Wolf proclaimed.

''Are you crazy?!'' Master Hand replied in a surprisingly aggravated voice.

''I demand a high amount for this kindof job! As you said, it's a ''task of utmost importance'' !'' Wolf argued, mocking Master Hand in the process.

''Fine! You get 750,000 Smash Coins! That's my final offer! On top of the 500,000, there's an extra 250,000 as a bonus.''

Wolf smirked. ''Deal.''

Master Hand sternly pointed at Wolf with his index finger. ''You better do a good job in protecting John.''

''Wait!'' Fox interrupted. Everyone turned their heads to the vulpine. ''No offense, but can we trust Wolf to do the job?''

''He's right. Wolf is too careless. He's not the type of person that can be trusted with a mission like this.'' Samus said.

''Yeah, I don't trust him enough. He's just a criminal!'' Red spoke up. Wolf gave him a death glare, coupled with a growl.

''This is my final decision!'' Master Hand said, silencing everyone.''You all may not trust him, but I will trust him just this once! I know he means well!''

''I doubt it! This is Wolf we're talking about! Even I-''

''Fox! SILENT!'' Master Hand shouted, losing his temper. Fox instantly shut his snout. ''Listen here! I don't care if he's a criminal from your world! In Smash Town, he's one of us! That's why I trust him! I will hear no further objections!'' Fox frowned in anger. ''Now, Wolf! Go pack up your things. You'll be moving out of Fox's room in the morning. As for the rest of you, be on alert. We don't know who we are dealing with.'' Master Hand proclaimed.

''What about them?'' Ness asked, gesturing toward the Mii thugs.

''I'll see to it. Dismissed!'' Everyone separated from each other, with the exception of Lucario, who decided to keep an eye on John.

Wolf walked down the hallway, ready to pack his few belongings. Besides his clothes and his gear, there want really anything else he owned. Suddenly, he was stopped by a hand on his metal shoulder. Wolf looked behind him. It was Fox.

''What do you want, pup?'' Wolf asked.

''You better not harm him, Wolf.'' Fox said, glaring into Wolf's one eye.

Wolf rolled his eyes. ''I won't. Now leave me alone, Fox!''

''You better protect him with all your life!''

''Risk my life?! Hell no!'' Wolf as he tried walking away. Fox grabbed both of Wolf's shoulders, and turned him around so that he would face him.

''Everything is on the line, Wolf. Every world and life is at stake. If he gets kidnapped, I will personally kill you myself!'' Fox threatened. ''And don't forget, your being paid for this! I don't trust you being around John, even though I can see through you. I'm gonna keep my eye on you!''

''Whatever, pup!'' Wolf said, unfazed by Fox's anger. He walked away as if nothing had happened. Fox kept on glaring at him, even though Wolf wasn't turning around. After a moment, he decided to walk in the other direction.

In the large bush where the rivals had had their conversation, a shadowy figure now whispered to himself

''Interesting...Interesting indeed.''

* * *

 _Featured in the Next Chapter..._

 _Al of the Smashers rushed into_ the the command _room. ''What happened?!''Link asked, alarmed._

 _''Smash Town is being attacked!'' Master Hand reported._

 _''What? By who?'' Samus asked._

 _''Is it the Subspace?'' Sonic asked, pulsing the questioning. Master Hand swayed back and forth._

 _''No...I don't know...''_

* * *

 _''Kid!'' Wolf ran toward John, swiftly defeating the enemies John couldn't. ''Kid! You have to attack! I can't always protect you!''_

 _''B-but, I can't!'' John shouted, scared out of his mind._

 _''Then try!'' Wolf_ said, _as the horde of enemies surrounded them. Wolf readied himself. John gulped, positioning himself in his fighting stance._

* * *

 _''Who are you?!'' Wolf asked. ''You back off! I won't hesitate to attack you!''_

 _''Don't worry...I'm on your side.'' The figure replied._

 _''I won't fall for it!'' Wolf shouted._


	5. Chapter V:It's Only Just Begun

_**Chapter 5: It's Only Just Begun**_

* * *

John and Wolf were currently in their room, trying to sleep. but it proved hard for the boy. After all, it had only been a day since the incident, and about twelve hours since he snapped out of his traumatized state. Even though Wolf was with him, he would constantly jolt his eyes towards the window, just in case. Sometimes, he could have sworn he saw someone lurking in the shadows beyond the glass. After a moment or two though, he would reassure himself that it was just his paranoia. Just to be safe, John asked Wolf to sleep on the bed near the window, while he slept on the bed near the door.

As dawn broke, the sun's rays entered the room. John shifted in his bed, wanting to roll on his side. Instead, he ended up falling out his bed, crashing on the floor with a thud. John groaned in pain, which woke up Wolf. The lupine rose from his position, wearing a black body top with matching shorts. He also wasn't wearing his signature eyepatch.

''Would you keep it down, kid...?'' Wolf said in an grumbly slur. He parted the raggedy fur that was covering his face, but left the rest of it unkept. After John didn't respond back, Wolf tried to head back to sleep by covering his face with a pillow. John sat up, placing his palm on his forehead. He glanced up at the clock hanging on the wall. It read 8:37 A:M. John sighed, since he never got up this early. He was about to get back into bed, when he heard a gentle knock at the door. John took a moment to stare at the door, wondering who was there. After another knock, John walked to the door, and opened it. He was greeted by Pit, who was pleasantly smiling.

''Hello.'' Pit cheerfully greeted.

''Oh...Hello.'' John also greeted. It was clear by the tone of his voice that he was still half-asleep.

''I don't think we've met yet. You can call me Pit. You knew that already, right?'' John slowly nodded his head in response. ''Just came to stop by and let you know breakfast will be ready soon. Now might be a good time for you and Wolf to get ready.'' Pit said, before walking away fro the door. John closed the door,and turned his attention to Wolf. He felt a little frightened about waking him up, but he had to do it.

''Hey, um...Wolf, Pit sai-'' John said as he slowly approached Wolf.

''I heard what the angel said!'' Wolf muffled under the pillow. ''I'll be ready in a few minutes! Just go get ready!'' John just looked away, and walked to the bathroom. After he finished his hygiene, John put on his outfit and equipment, complete with weapons. The boy sighed to himself, and opened the door. Waiting outside was Wolf, who had a towel on one shoulder, and his gear on the other. As soon as John left the bathroom, Wolf entered it, and closed the door behind him. After a while, Wolf exited the bathroom, fully geared up.

''C'mon kid, let's go.'' Wolf said while walking out of the room. John began to speed walk in order to catch up with his protector. Wolf took the lead, since Master Hand's orders required every Smasher to be on alert, and vigilant.

Eventually, the two Smashers entered the main dining hall. As expected, most of the other Smashers were there waiting for their food, while the others were talking to each other.

Wolf turned to John. ''I hope you won't be needing me here, kid...The rest of the morons are here at your disposal.'' Wolf said while gesturing toward Fox and Falco. The two were oblivious to him, since he was on the other side of the cafeteria. After a moment without response, Wolf walked towards his seat, not saying anything else to the boy. Feeling a little awkward, John walked towards his chair.

''Hello John, and good morning.'' Lucario said as he opened one of his eyes. It was looking straight at John. The rest of the table followed suit, and turned their attention towards the boy.

''Oh, um...Good morning.'' John said, taking his seat.

''Are you okay? That was quite an event just happened yesterday.'' Lucario said.

''Yeah...Please don't remind me...'' John responded with uneasiness.

''Forgive me, I did not mean to disturb you..''

''No, no...It's okay...'' John said. Lucario didn't even have to read his aura to tell that wasn't the case.

After they had finished their breakfast, everyone headed out for the command room to see what Master Hand wants to talk about. John was in the middle of the crowd, while his protector followed suit. When they entered the command room, John made sure to sit close by to Wolf. While they waited for Master Hand's arrival, the Smashers began to chatter amongst themselves. John felt somewhat awkward and uneasy, since the only ones who weren't talking were him and Wolf. He decided to break the silence, as well as the ice, between them. ''S-so...How old are you...?''

''Why do you ask?'' Wolf asked with his usual gruff voice. The boy began to sweat nervously. Even though Wolf was his main protector, he couldn't help but get intimidated by him.

''Umm...I-I'm just curious...'' John answered, timidity showing in his voice. Wolf glanced at him, refusing to change the look on his face. John felt his heart race. The lupine was far scarier in person than in-game. Wolf let out a "Humph", figuring it was more than enough to convince him.

''Thirty-nine.'' Wolf replied as both of them looked away from each other. For John, it was fear. For Wolf, it was simple annoyance.

A few minutes later, Master Hand finally floated his way through the command room door. ''Attention, everyone!'' He called out as he entered the room. Everyone looked toward Master Hand, and made sure to hush their conversations. ''As a quick announcement, we have all been invited to watch an event, a soccer tournament specifically. However, that isn't all that important. What is important, is that something strange is happening in Smash World.''

''What do you mean by strange?''Link asked, a bit confused. Everyone nodded in agreement.

''Ok, I discovered that a number of Miis have gone missing without a trace.'' Master Hand explained. Everyone was intently listening to what the Hand was saying, and everyone could read him clearly, even though he didn't have a face. ''Now that's bad enough, but what concerns me is this...'' Just then a hologram appeared in the center of the table. It was a message.

This is what it read: ** _''Give us the new Smasher by tomorrow, or your town will suffer.''_**

''This is also going around social media, and the news.'' Master Hand switched the hologram from the message, into a clip from the news.

''Hey...that was on the news yesterday!'' Popo and Nana said in unison. The older Smashers looked at the siblings while they raised their eyebrows. The two silently retreated back into their chairs, as they all paid their attention back to the news.

' _'As of today, numerous innocent citizens are reported missing. The only piece of evidence is a message that left at the home of one of the victims. Police presume that the message is from the culprit themselves.''_ The newscaster let out a nervous sigh, before continuing. _''To quote the message: ''Give us the new Smasher by tomorrow, or your town will suffer.'' What does this mean for our beloved Smash Town? Do they intend to go through with their threats? How will the Smashers react to the situat-''_ The room was briefly filled with silence as Master a Hand cut off the feedback.

''This is a problem...They've resorted to kidnapping the Miis just to get to John.'' Master Hand said with growing concern. Everyone just sat in silence, John especially.

''So...What's the plan?'' Captain Falcon asked, breaking the silence. The Smashers darted their eyes around the room, looking for an answer from their comrades. But no one said anything, since no one was sure what they could answer. After a few seconds of this, everyone looked at Master Hand for answers, but he too wasn't sure either. ''So, nothing?''

''No...We stick to our original plan...We protect John at all costs. Wolf!' 'The said lupine looked at Master Hand, clearly uninterested.

''Do everything you can to protect John tomorrow. Remember, you're being paid good money for this. As for the rest of you, prepare for an attack tomorrow, even if one won't occur. Be sure to keep on eye on the news tonight. Dismissed!'' Everyone stood up from their chairs, and headed out for the door.

''Hey, umm...Wolf...'' John said while catching up with his protector. As he reached him, the two of them became the last Smashers to exit the room.

''What is it?'' Wolf asked. They were now walking down the hallway.

''Can I be alone for a bit?'' John whispered, making sure no one else heard him. Wolf jolted his head towards John with an angry expression on his face.

''Are you crazy kid?! If the Hand found out I left you alone, my head will be on a silver plater!'' Wolf whisper-yelled. At this point, the two were lagging behind the rest of the group. Mario and Luigi simultaneously turned around to address them.

''Hey! Are you a-gonna catch up?'' Mario asked. Both John and Wolf stopped their conversation, and looked at Mario.

Wolf rolled his eyes. ''Can you wait a minute?!'' The lupine turned back to the boy, and John looked at Wolf.''I would gladly leave you, but I won't! I'd rather not have the Hand sending me to that Cruel Brawl! Now come on, let's keep going!'' Wolf once again whispered-yelled as he followed the group. John looked a tad bit gloomy as he followed everyone.

As the day passed by, nothing of particular interest happened. It was as if the events surrounding the meeting weren't occurring. As the sun went down, and nighttime came, every Smasher was inside their respective rooms. Practically all of them, including John and Wolf were watching the news.

''Say, Wolf...Why are we watching the news again?'' John asked, clearly bored out of his mind.

''The Hand told us we should, but he never said it was necessary. If you want to change it, then go ahead,'' Wolf replied while he rolled his eyes. John didn't make the move since the remote was right next to the lupine. After a few minutes of menial stories on the news, something caught the attention of both Smashers.

 _''Breaking news! As of now, the Smashers have yet to make a statement on the threat left yesterday! What will they do?!''_ The Mii newscaster said, shocked. At the right corner of the screen was the Smash symbol, with an X crossed over the logo. Wolf had only been hearing the news up to this point. Now he was listening.

 _''The Mii citizens are now in a panic! The protectors of our beloved Smash Town has yet to make a move! We have asked local citizens about the current situation, and this is what they have to say.''_

 _''Nintendo City isn't safe...and the Smasher_ aren't _reacting to this?''_

 _''Why aren't they doing anything?! Their job is to protect Smash Town, so why won't they act!''_

 _''I knew it! I knew they can't be trusted! They don't care about our town!''_

 _''With the current situation, I hope they do something about it...''_

John was simply shocked, while Wolf frowned. The clips from irritated citizens only continued.

''Seriously?'' Wolf asked, still frowning.

''S-so...what will happen now?'' John asked with a timid, yet confused voice.

''How would I know?'' Wolf said while turning of the TV. He then placed the remote on the drawer by his bed. ''Just go to sleep.'' He continued, as he turned toward the window, closing his eyes. John tried to follow his advice, but simply couldn't. For an hour the human tossed and turned in his bed, waiting to fall asleep. After giving up, the human gazed up at the clock. According to it, it currently 10:58 P:M. John felt he was thirsty. He looked across the room at Wolf, who seemed to be sleeping. The lupine was snoring, but not loudly. John was unsure whether or not he should leave to get a drink. Eventually, he came to the conclusion that a quick drink never hurt anybody. Without any further hesitation, he got off his bed, walked to the door and slowly opened it. As he exited his room, he closed the door behind him as quietly as he had opened it.

After making his way down the halls of the mansion, John entered the kitchen. He walked to the fridge, and opened it. The light poured into his eyes, causing him to cover them for a moment. When he opened them back up, he could see a variety of ingredients that could be used to cook any kind of dish. John began to think all of the delectable items in the fridge, then shook his head before he got sidetracked. He grabbed a big water bottle in the back. The bottle was nearly empty, but still had enough to refresh someone. John felt unsure if he wanted to drink from the bottle itself. So, the boy took a glass from the counter, and poured from the bottle, finishing it. John quickly downed the water, feeling quite refreshed. As he threw the bottle to the trash can, he noticed something out of the corner of his eyes. The boy instantly twisted his head towards the window, fearing another break-in. He could barley see anything, but could confirm that what he did see was a tail with silver fur.

''Is it Wolf?'' John thought as he leaned closer to the window. Now, he could see could the tail more clearly. It seemed to be distorted, as if it was a glitch out of a game...

 _''You know you should not be alone.''_ A voice said, startling John. The boy quickly turned around, expecting to have to fight. He eased up when he realized it was simply Lucario. _''What are you doing here at his time of night?''_

''Well...I wanted a glass of water...'' John looked back at the window. The tail was gone. He looked back at Lucario.

 _''Why do you not wake up Wolf?''_ Lucario further questioned.

''Well, he was sleeping and I didn't want to disturb him...'' John timidly answered.

 _''Is this all that happened?''_

''Yeah,'' John said, but Lucario just raised his eyebrow as he continued to stare. No one spoke for some time. ''What...?''

 _''I can tell you are not telling the full story. In case you have forgotten, I am the_ aura _Pokemon. It is practically impossible to lie to me.''_ John just looked away, knowing full well he had lied. _''Now, are you going to tell me the truth?''_

''Well, I think I saw Wolf outside the window.'' John answered, coming clean. Lucario looked at John, surprisingly confused.

 _''Wolf? I still detect Wolf inside the mansion. What did you see? And what made you think it was Wolf?''_

''I-I saw a silver tail...Wolf is the only one with silver fur...''

 _''Are you sure?''_

''I'm sure. Also, the tail seemed to be glitching, if you can call it that.'' John replied, unsure of his own answer. Lucario was only further confused, since he could tell that boy wasn't lying.

 _''What do you mean by "glitching"?''_ Lucario asked, wanting to get more answers. He wasn't sure if it was an enemy, or perhaps something else. What made the situation stranger for the jackal, was that he couldn't detect any auras on the grounds outside the mansion.

''I mean...The tail was acting weird. Like if it was truly glitching out of a game...''

 _''Strange...I have not sensed anything outside the mansion. Are you absolutely sure this is what you saw?''_ John nodded. _''I am going to have to report this information back to Master Hand. For now, please allow me to accompany you back to your room.''_

As both of them walked towards the dorms, John still felt unsure about the situation at hand. He was sure he had seen someone, or something right outside the kitchen window.

Lucario had his aura at maximum range, which meant he could detect everything. However, he still couldn't sense anything outside the mansion. The mystery of the situation concerned the jackal. Whether it was an enemy or an ally, either way, he had to be alert.

* * *

The Next Morning...

Despite all that was going on, everything seemed to be normal for the most part. Everyone was in the dining area, eating their usual food. Lucario had a visible aura around his body, which meant he was more alert. He wasn't eating any food, even though he had a full plate in front of him. Instead, he simply stated off into the distance, seemingly focusing. Everyone at the table, and the surrounding tables, were concerned for the jackal. He had always been reclusive, but never to this extent.

''H-hey, Lucario? Why aren't you eating your food...? It might get cold...''John asked in an timid tone. The aura Pokemon gave no response.

''What happened to Lucario?'' Kirby asked.

''I am not sure...'' Meta-Knight replied. He looked to John for some answers, due to his facial expression. ''Say John, you look to be hiding something from us. Would you mind sharing it?'' As soon as he said that, most everyone at the surrounding tables looked to John. The boy began to sweat a little.

''U-umm...I told Lucario that I saw something outside the window when I was getting a glass of water...''John respond.

''What was it you saw?'' Marth asked.

''Well, it went like this...'' John said, before telling the whole story to anyone who was listening. Most of them raised their eyebrows when he told them exactly what he had seen.

''You saw someone at night with a silver tail?'' Marth asked.

''And it was glitching?'' Red followed up. John nodded in response to both questions. Despite his testimony, it didn't help the confusion.

''Are you sure?''Marth asked. Once again, John nodded.

''Wait! Why were you alone?!'' Fox shouted across the room. It was if he blocked out the rest of the account beyond that point.

''I didn't think getting a glass of water could hurt anybody!'' John shouted back.

''Fox, there's no need to raise your voice. Lucario was there with him.'' Peach said, trying to calm the vulpine.

''Fine...'' Fox muttered as he folded his arms.

''Protective much?'' Falco slyly said. Fox gave the avian a glare. Falco just shrugged in response.

After that, the entire room became as silent as Lucario. They were also all deep in thought, just like Lucario. Similar questions filled the heads of the Smashers. Was someone spying on them? Is it the same figure who made that threat? Would they go through with it? The only one with something different going through their head was John. He was simply wondering what the other Smashers were thinking about. Time seemed to stand still while everyone was pondering to themselves. This perception was suddenly broken when an alarm went off. Red lights began to swirl around the room, and an automated message echoed off of the walls.

 **''WARNING! WARNING! CODE RED! CODE RED! SMASH TOWN IS UNDER ATTACK! PROCEED TO THE COMMAND ROOM IMMEDIATELY!''**

Every Smasher immediately snapped out of their thought process, and rushed out of the room. John was the last to leave the room, since he was initially thrown off by the alarm. It didn't take long for the group to reach the command room. People instantly glued their eyes to the screens on the wall, wanting to see what was happening from the security cameras. The Smashers had direct access to every security camera in the city, so they could see attacks from every angle imaginable.

''What happening?!'' Link asked, alarmed.

''Smash Town is being attacked!'' Master Hand shouted as he rushed into the room.

''By who, or what?''Samus asked.

''Is it the Subspace?'' Sonic also asked. Master Hand swayed back and forth in response to both questions.

''No...I don't know...'' Everyone's eyes widened. The questions had just been definitively answered. They began to see what looked like glitching, demonic versions of themselves. On one screen, Glitch Pit was attacking a crowd of Miis. On another, Glitch Falco could be seen destroying a building with his Arwing. Below him was a group of enemies, all glitching. Every screen in the room showed similar scenes of destruction.

''Wh-What the?!'' John exclaimed, shocked.

''W-what on earth is going on?!'' Ness asked, as he saw his glitched self using PK thunder.

''That's the thing, I don't know!'' Master Hand shouted, obviously concerned.

On of the screens they could see Glitch Wolf stomping down the road. He was wearing a sinister smile from ear to ear as he looked at the chaos around him. Even if he wasn't glitching, he still was still a terrifying sight to see. His head turned to where the camera was. The smile vanished from his face, and was replaced by rage. The glitch lupine pulled out a blaster and fired it at the camera. Static now filled the screen, as the Smashers watched in horror.

''We must act now! The whole town is in danger!'' Master Hand shouted, breaking the silence. Everyone nodded, now looking determined. John, on the other hand, was nervous, and couldn't seem to shake it off.

''John will accompany you all as well. I hope you will do your best! Especially you, Wolf!'' Wolf rolled his eyes. ''Is everyone ready?!'' There were shouts of "Yes!''and "I guess" in response. With that, the Smashers began to rush towards the front door.

As the Smashers left the front door of the mansion, they saw what could only be described as pure chaos. The sky was laced with smoke and fire from the burning buildings below. A good chunk of them had already crumbled to the ground, and their wreckage covered the streets. Several Mii citizens were currently running away from the war zone, as well as the Glitched Smashers who caused it.

One of them was a Mii girl, who was being chased down by the Glitched versions of the Ice Climbers. Both of their parkas were a mix of silver and white, and their eyes glowed crimson red. The key difference between the regular Ice Climbers and the Glitched however, was their hammers. Rather than just regular mallets, the demonic Eskimos carried ones covered in spikes. They were deadly enough to crush someone with one swift blow.

The girl, who had every right to be afraid, suddenly tripped while fleeing. As she turned her head to face them, her heart skipped a beat. The Glitched Ice Climbers were in the air, ready to smash the girl with their spiked hammers. The girl screamed, and closed her eyes shut. She was bracing for the impact, which she could tell would crush her. But, it never came. Instead, she opened her eyes and found Pit blocking the attack. She turned her head to see the rest of the Smashers arriving at the scene. Marth broke from the crowd to help the girl stand on her feet.

''We will handle the situation. Go.'' Marth ordered. The girl didn't hesitate to follow his instructions. She took off as quickly as she could. The Smashers then turned their attention to the Glitched Ice Climbers before them, as both sides readied themselves.

''Who are you?!'' Fox asked, aiming his blaster at the siblings.

Both of them flashed mischievous grin. ''Can't you tell? We're the Ice Climbers!'' The tone in their voices were demonic, distorted, or both.

The real siblings simultaneously became angry. ''No, we are the Ice Climbers!'' Nana and Popo shouted at the same time. The Glitched Climbers continued to grin, as if it were stuck to their faces.

''Well, well, well. If it isn't our doppelgängers!'' Glitch Nana said.

''What do you mean by "doppelgängers"?'' Ike asked.

''Oh, you don't know? How pathetic!'' Glitch Popo said, laughing. ''Each of you was born when your game was created, but that's common knowledge for you! It also shouldn't be new news that in every game there are glitches! And it was out of these glitches that we came to be! So unlike you, we were made unintentionally. Also unlike you, we were also unwanted. The people you praise, are the same ones we hate! At best, we were unseen from the creators. At worst, which was when they found us, they tried to erase us! And when our Master gets a hold of the boy...'' Glitch Popo fell into a fit of laughter before continuing. ''We can take our revenge on humanity. All of the fans, the creators, everybody! Everyone you love will die at our hands!''

''OVER MY DEAD FUCKING BODY, YOU BITCHES!'' Wolf shouted at the siblings. If it wasn't for that fact that this was a serious situation, someone would have mentioned the sheer rage that came out of Wolf's mouth.

''Woah, language.''Glitch Nana said, chuckling,''It would be easier if you hand over the boy.'' Both of the siblings looked at the boy, who was standing in the middle of the group.

''Like hell, we'll hand him over! You bunch of assholes!'' Fox shouted. Unlike his rival, the shout wasn't nearly as loud or full of rage.

''Figured. Looks like we'll have to take him by force!''

Both of the Glitched Ice Climbers jumped simultaneously, in an attempt to smash Fox into the ground. The vulpine, as well as the Smashers around him, quickly dodged the attack. The spiked hammers hit the ground, causing the ground to slightly shake a bit.

''We have to split up, and fight our respective counterparts!'' Marth instructed.

''Don't worry, we'll easily take care of these fakes!'' Popo said. The siblings jumped forward to face their Glitched selves.

''You think this will be easy?! That's where you're wrong!'' Glitch Nana said as she raised her hammer. Just then, five enemies appeared before her. They shared her silver coloring and red eyes, but more resemblance to the Primids from the Emissary. Of course, they were all Glitched, which only made them look more intimidating than before.

''After the kid.'' Glitch Nana commanded, pointing her hammer at John. The Primids approached slowly, as the Smashers got into their fighting stance.

''We can handle this on our own! We have a town to save!'' Nana said. She then smashed the Glitched Primid with her hammer, causing it to disappear.

''Nana's right! Everyone split up and deal with your counterparts!'' Marth ordered. Everyone nodded in response.

''Wh-what about me?'' John timidly asked. Fox looked at the boy.

''You follow Wolf!'' Fox said.

Wolf rolled his eyes.''I don't need help from a kid!''

''My gosh Wolf, follow the protocols!'' Fox demanded.

''Make me, McCloud!'' Wolf growled.

''Quit your bickering! The town is in danger! We don't have time for this!'' Samus yelled. ''Wolf, you will let John follow you, whether you like it or not.'' Wolf didn't have anything to say. Instead, he just grunted.

''Can you guys just go?! We're fighting over here!'' Popo yelled. Unfortunately, they were ignored.

''Whatever...'' Wolf said as he walked away. John was unsure if he should follow him.

''Go ahead kid, follow him, he won't bite. He prefers to use his claws anyways.'' Falco said while slyly smiling.

''Nows, not the time, Falco!'' Fox said before getting back on track. ''Ok everybody, let's go!'' Fox ordered as everyone went their separate direction. John hesitated for a moment, before running to his protector.

* * *

Wolf and John were currently fighting any enemies they came across. At least, that's what the plan was supposed to be. In reality, Wolf did all of the fighting, while John stood by with his blaster in his hands. ''Can you actually help me out, kid?'' Wolf said he released his forward smash. He lunged at an enemy, twisting his claws towards it as he did so. Upon landing the hit, the Glitch Primids disappeared.

''I-I am helping!'' John said, still holding his blaster firm in his hand. He aimed it an approaching enemy, and pulled the trigger. The Glitched was somewhat tossed from the shot, but not destroyed. Wolf dashed towards the enemy and flipped kicked it, finishing it off.

''Well, you ain't doing a good job at it!''

''At least I'm trying!''

Wolf rolled his eyes as he rushed to defeat another enemy, leaving the boy behind. John was about to follow him, but a hand tightly gripped his shoulder. The boy simply paused, and glanced at his shoulder. It was there he caught a glimpse of a long claw, inches away from his neck. John gulped, and slowly turned his head around. His face turned pale as he met up with the face of Glitch Wolf. As their eyes met, the lupine smirked menacingly.

''Found you, boy.'' Glitch Wolf said, his voice distorted. John opened his mouth to scream, but it was quickly covered up. ''Now, now, no need to scream...'' Glitch Wolf said, now chuckled. ''You wouldn't want me to harm you now, would you?'' The Glitched reached out and got a hold of John's arm, making the boy drop his blaster. In an attempt to break free, John began to wriggle around in Glitch Wolf's grasp.

''This would be a hell of a lot easier if you'd stop struggling.'' Glitch Wolf said as he started dragging the boy. Using what arm space he had, John quickly grabbed one of his grenades, and tossed it at Glitch Wolf. Since it was in contact mode, it exploded immediately upon impact with the lupine. The explosion tossed Glitch Wolf, as well as John, a few feet away. They both hit the ground with a hard thud.

''Grr! You want me to hurt you?! Fine then!'' Glitch Wolf growled, as he started to approach John. John was currently backed up into a corner, with a horrified look on his face. He hoped someone would save him, but that was becoming more unlikely with each passing second.

''How about I teach you a little lesson?'' Glitch Wolf said as raised his claw to attack. John quickly blocked, relaxing his shield. Just as the lupine was about to slash the red bubble, a blaster shot hit his hand. Both John and Glitch Wolf looked to their left. They saw the real Wolf, who was pointing his blaster at his doppelgänger.

''Kid, can't you save yourself for once?'' Wolf asked.

Glitch Wolf chuckled. ''Saving people is a bit strange for a criminal scum like you. Especially when it's someone you supposedly don't care about? Wolf glared him down, even though he was right. ''And how come you're doing this, O'Donnell? Is it the money? Perhaps. Or is it something more?''

''I'm just doing what the Hand told me. There's nothing else to it.''

''Oh, I don't think so. You care 'bout the kid, don't you?'' Glitch Wolf said as a grin formed on his muzzle.

''What're you talking about?''

''Don't act like I don't know. I am your counterpart after all! I can feel your emotions, and I don't feel any emptiness. There's no denying that you care for him?''

''I-I...'' Wolf stuttered, unable to come up with a response.

''See, you do care about him! How wonderful!'' Glitch Wolf said, as he started laughing like he was some sort of crazy person. ''Your weak and pathetic, Wolf! You'll never be strong if your gonna act like that!'' They were unaware that John was unshielded, and was listening. He looked at Wolf and could see a worried, yet angry expression from the lupine's face.

 _''He cares about me? That almost seems unreal...''_ John thought to himself. Soon afterwards, Glitch Wolf stopped laughing.

''Enough talk!'' Glitch Wolf shouted, as he got into Wolf's signature fighting stance. ''If you're willing to fight for the kid, then I guess I'll have to take you down!''

''Fine!'' Wolf said, as he also got into his fighting stance. He then approached by using his forward smash, but Glitch Wolf ducked before grabbing Wolf's collar. The Glitched then sent multiple knees into Wolf's face, before slamming his elbow into him. Wolf hit the ground, but rolled away as soon as he made contact. In response, Glitch Wolf dashed towards him, then flip-kicked directly into him, once again knocking him away. Even though he was already tired, Wolf continued to try to attack his counterpart. After pulling off a few moves and hits, he used his forward smash, which flung Glitch Wolf back upon impact. The Glitched lupine quickly did a kick up, then leaned forward and slashed Wolf.

As the fight continued, John became increasingly nervous seeing Wolf getting easily overpowered. Despite Wolf's best efforts and minor successes, Glitch Wolf always managed to counter back. Before his eyes, he could see Glitch Wolf dealing a devastating blow by performing a down smash. He swiped his claws left and right, and flung Wolf back. The Smasher hit the ground with a hard thud. There were bruises and cut covering his face and body. He slowly picked himself up, wheezing in the process. Wolf then fell down on his knees due to a lack of strength.

''What? Over already? That was pathetic!'' Glitch Wolf said as he walked over to his counterpart. He grabbed Wolf by the neck and slowly began to lift him into the air. Despite Wolf's struggles, the Glitched managed to lift him up to the point that his boots were not touching the ground. ''You're weak, you know that?! And because you're weak, it makes it a little easier for me to kill you!'' Glitch Wolf said while tightening his grip. Wolf was now not only struggling to get the hands off of his neck, but was also struggling with breathing. Both struggles were turning out to be a losing battle. John was watching helplessly from a distance. As he saw Wolf equally helpless, he decided that he had to do something. He began to silently approach them as he held a grenade in contact mode.

''S-so...h-here I am...'' Wolf managed to speak, even though he could hardly breathe. ''Dying...''

Glitch Wolf chuckled. ''Yes, dying all alone...with no one to save you! No one to care!'' Glitch Wolf was unaware that John was currently right behind him. ''And once I deal with you, the kid is coming with me! And there nothing you or the rest of your pathetic friends can do about it!'' Wolf's vision was fading, and so was his consciousness. However, he noticed John crouching behind the Glitched, holding his grenade. He tried to speak, but couldn't at first.

''Huh? What's that? I didn't hear you. Speak up a little!'' Glitch Wolf mockingly said, tilting his head so his ear faced Wolf.

''Y-you're dead w-wrong…''

That was when John tossed the grenade at Glitch Wolf's back, which activated on impact. The following explosion not only made Glitch Wolf drop Wolf, but flung him as well. Almost immediately after Glitch Wolf collided with the ground, he leaped back up again, and quickly faced John. His face was red with anger, his eyes squinted, and his teeth clenched. John began to back away in fear.

''So, your gonna be a hero huh? Tell me...why save a worthless criminal like him?'' John didn't answer. That was when Glitch Wolf dashed towards John and clenched his collar. The Glitched pulled him only inches away from his menacing face. ''What's the matter? Cat got your tongue? Maybe it also got your guts!'' He paused for a moment, and began to form a sinister smile on his face. ''Well, at least it saved your breath for me!'' Glitch Wolf raised his claw to John, but was slashed in the back by Wolf's claws. He dropped John in pain. ''Gah! How come someone has to always interrupt me?!''

''Kid! Behind me!'' Wolf commanded. John quickly got on his feet and ran to his protector. Wolf now glared at Glitch Wolf, as if he was staring into his soul.

''Well, well look at this. Double teaming on me, are we? It doesn't make much of a difference. Two weaklings are just about as weak as one. Just in case you still have some fight in you, let's see you take on my friends here!'' Glitch Wolf raised his hand, as fifteen Glitched enemies appeared before him. He then jumped onto a pile of rubble to witness the battle. Despite John's fear and Wolf's injuries, they were both ready for a fight.

''Kid, I know I said I didn't need help from you, but I could really use some right now.'' Wolf said as he dashed to deal with some of the enemies. John looked to his left and saw three Glitched approaching him. At first, he backed away. Suddenly, he stopped, stood his ground and took a deep breath. After building up some courage and determination, he put up his fighting stance. The three Glitched jumped simultaneously, and began to raise their fists, while flames began to engulf them. As they approached the ground for a fiery punch, John quickly rolled away. The Glitched landed on the ground with their knees. Before they could react, John dashed towards them and performed his up smash, which sent them flying upwards. On the way down from his attack, John didn't have time to land on his feet. Instead, he crashed head first into the ground. John slowly got up with a sudden feeling of dizziness. While he was trying to fully regain his balance, Wolf was finishing off a group of Glitched. He turned around to check on the boy, and say him trying to snap out of his dizziness. He also saw several Glitched about to attack John from behind.

''Kid!'' Wolf shouted as he ran towards the enemies. He promptly began to beat the day lights out of them. ''You've gotta attack, Kid! How many times do I have to tell you this?!'' As Wolf yelled this to him, John snapped back, losing most of the confidence he had built up.

''I'm sorry, b-but, I can't! T-there's too many of t-them!'' John timidly shouted.

''Then try!'' Wolf said as a brand new horde of enemies surrounded them. The two Smashers readied themselves as they returned to their fighting stance. John gulped as he considered the number of Glitched that were circling them. John then noticed puffs of smog that seemed to be coming from the back of the crowd. As he lifted his head, he could see Fox and Falco fighting their way through the Glitched. The enemies that were on the verge of attacking John were now focused on the Starfox duo. The boy watched in awe as the two took down the hoard of enemies with ease, using moves they had mastered. As the last Glitched dissipated, John got a better look at Fox and Falco. Both were bruised up and were wearing tattered clothes, probably due to their respective fights.

''Having a tough time?'' Falco asked Wolf. Wolf did nothing except glare at him.

''Are you okay, John?'' Fox asked worriedly. John nodded in response. In the distance, the boy could see more Smashers approaching from the distance. ''John, sit tight. Let us handle this! And Wolf, you're not coming with us.''

''Are you calling me weak?'' Wolf asked, growling at his rival. Fox rolled his eyes.

''No, but you are badly hurt. You need to recover. Just stay there!'' Fox and Falco dashed, fighting off any enemies that remained in sight. They were soon joined by the rest of the Smashers. Wolf and John simply stood and watched. Soon after they were left, Wolf was struggling to stand due to the pain. As his knees finally gave way, he began to fall down. John quickly reacted by catching him.

''A-are you okay...?'' John asked. Wolf glared at John. Even though John was shocked by the glare, he dared not drop the lupine.

''Do I look okay, kid?'' Wolf asked. John slowly shook his head. ''Then don't ask!'' John slowly put Wolf on the ground, as he watched the Smashers fighting off the remaining Glitched. Thirty five pairs of red eyes, belonging to the Glitched Smashers watched them as well.

''They are powerful foes.'' Glitch Marth commented.

Glitch Fox grunted.''I couldn't care less how strong they are. What matters is the kid.''

 _''Let's just get back to Master. I believe he has something wonderful they can deal with later.''_ Glitch Lucario said with an evil grin. The rest of the Glitched Smashers displayed similar smiles as they entered a portal of their creation. As the last one delved into it, the portal closed behind them.

* * *

As the last Glitched dissipated into a puff of smoke, Miis began to come out of whatever buildings were still standing. They began to form a crowd around the Smashers and bombarded them with every fitting question imaginable. The protectors of Smash Town continued to ignore them all the way to the front door of the mansion.

A few hours had passed since the ordeal, and all of the Smashers were currently resting up. While some of them relaxed in their dorms, most had to be administered to the infirmary, due to the damage they took. Out of everyone, Wolf had taken the hardest beating, which was only made worse by the choking he had endured. He was first to be administered to the infirmary, and had been lying on one of its beds for hours now. At the moment, John was with him at Master Hand's request. Both were silent, and both were avoiding eye contact with each other. The silence was only made more uncomfortable for John, since no one else in the infirmary was talking either.

''A-are you gonna be silent the whole time...?'' John asked as he glanced at Wolf. The lupine was still bruised up, but he had somewhat recovered since the fight. Most of his gear was taken off expect his black top, pants, and his purple boots. Everything else that was disposable was removed. He was currently laying in his side, facing the wall. For a moment, John wondered if he had fallen asleep, due to a lack of response. When he walked to the other side of the bed to check, Wolf rolled away from the boy. John looked away, bored out of his skull. ''You're not gonna say anything at all...?''

''Maybe it's because I have nothing to say! There, you happy?!'' Wolf angrily growled. His tone only further cemented the fact that he didn't wish to speak.

''I'm just worried...'' John said in a meek tone.

Wolf rolled his eye. ''Then stop worrying. I'm fine.'' Wolf replied, adding a grunt to the end of it. John sighed and formed a frown as he looked up at the ticking clock. It read 8:58 P:M. The boy sighed again, hoping to speed up time for the next two minutes. He began to think to himself, mainly reflecting on the fight. Suddenly, after what felt like an hour, a knock on the door snapped John out of his thoughts. The boy raised his head to see Link standing by the entrance. Like practically all of the Smashers, the Hylian had his share of scratches, cuts, and bruises. Of course, most of them had either mostly healed or were bandaged.

''I'm just checking in. The lights are about to go out in a minute, so you two should get some sleep. Also, Master Hand said that you should report to the command room first thing in the morning.''

''O-ok.'' John looked at Wolf, who had yet to acknowledge Link's statement.

''Wolf...?''

''Fine, fine! We'll be there.'' Wolf said, clearly annoyed.

''Alright, goodnight.'' Link said as he left the room. The sounds of his footsteps could heard getting further and further away from the infirmary. Right after he left earshot, the lights throughout the mansion automatically turned off. John lay on an empty bed, and looked at Wolf. The lupine seemed to be asleep, but it was hard to tell from his angle. John simply continued to stare at a wall while his eyes began to droop. Eventually, their weight was simply too much. John slowly closed his eyes, as he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

 **''WARNING! WARNING! DANGEROUS ENEMY INCOMING! PROCEED TO THE COMMAND ROOM IMMEDIATELY!''**

Like the first warning, this one was followed by swirling red lights that filled the room. John groaned, as the obnoxious automated message kept on repeating. He sat up and glanced at the clock. The specific time couldn't be read until the alarm lights passed by it. When he was able to see the dials, John realized it was 4:11 A:M. From his side he heard Wolf growl out ''Again with this bull crap?'' Suddenly, rapid raps came from the door.

''Are you guys awake?'' Samus said, identifying her as the knocker.

''Yeah!'' John responded, even though he was still half-asleep.

''Ready up, then head for the command room!'' another voice said. Even in his drowsy state, it didn't take long for John to realize the voice belonged to Fox. Along with the voices, the boy could also hear a large amount of footsteps passing by the infirmary. Based on context, John guessed that they were also headed to the command room.

''Why can't I have a peaceful night without being annoyed?'' Wolf asked himself. The lupine got off the bed and grabbed on the same table as John's. ''Suit up, kid.' 'Wolf ordered as he put on his blue vest. John nodded as he grabbed his utility and wrapped it around his waist. He then holster his blaster around his right leg, and put his jacket on. He glanced at Wolf, fully set, fully ready.

''Let's go.'' Wolf said as he ran out of the infirmary. John followed soon after, and had no problem with catching up with him.

As both of them reached the command room, instead of opening the door normally, Wolf had the not-so-well-thought-out idea of bursting through the door. This little idea of his caused the other Smasher to stare at the lupine upon his entrance. As they saw him stomp through the room, they noticed John causally walking behind him, as if nothing unusual had happened. No one in the room dared to speak a word. That was until Falco decided to break the silence with his signature sarcasm.

''Hey O'Donnell, you know there's this thing called a doorknob, right?''

Wolf just grunted at the response. ''Whatever.''

''This is no time for sarcasm, we have a serious matter at hand! Look!'' Master Hand called out as a cue for everyone to look at the main screen. What they saw was a building, or at least something that looked like a building, destroying what was still standing from the previous attack. It had a silver effect, like the Glitched, two large windows for eyes, and a giant door as it's mouth. The Smashers didn't have to look at the footage for long to realize the scale of the upcoming fight.

''Th-that thing is huge!'' John exclaimed, shocked. Most of the other Smashers were similarly shocked, but said nothing.

''Those who could fly on the air, get to your ships!'' A select number of Smashers, including those who could fly naturally, nodded. ''Captain Falcon! Get to your blue Falcon! The rest of you will either be on the wings of craft, or on top of the Blue Falcon!'' Everyone nodded, understanding the game plan. ''John, you stay here.'' John looked up at Master Hand, confused.

''W-why?''

''This is an extremely dangerous mission were about to partake in. You're too inexperienced to fight something like that, and after what Wolf reported about your performance in the last mission, you won't be helping anyone if you're too scared.'' Master Hand said.

''B-but...w-what would I do...?'' John asked. Despite the fact that he was afraid, he hated feeling helpless.

''That's up to you. The rest of you, move out!'' Fox sent a worried glance at John before following the rest of the team out of the room. John hung his head down, feeling useless. He simply sat down at a random chair, as if on cue. After what felt like an eternity of mopping to himself, the boy looked out the window. In the distance he could see the Glitched building, with a flurry of tiny ships approaching it.

* * *

As the Smashers arrived at the scene, they all stopped their vehicles to inspect the Glitched building before them. ''Geez, it already looked pretty big from the screens... '' Falco was heard saying from the com.

''Yeah, but how do we stop it?! It would take a whole fleet of Arwings to take that down!'' Fox said.

''We have to try at the very least!'' Marth said through the com.

''You're right. Alright, just hang in tight! We'll see what we can do!'' Fox said as he flew his Arwing into formation alongside Wolf and Falco. ''Let's rock n' roll boys!'' As Wolf heard his rival shout that through the com, he simply rolled his eyes.

Fox began to attack the building by rapidly firing lasers at it. The building, almost sensing the incoming lasers, paused its destruction. Right before it would have been hit, it opened it's mouth and engulfed the lasers.

''What the?! Did it just eat the lasers?!'' Falco asked.

''Apparently so.'' Wolf answered.

''Why are you so calm about this?!''Falco asked.

''Guys! It's attacking!'' Pit said as everyone focused their attention towards the building. It's mouth was open, and seemed to be charging up something. Suddenly, it spat out the lasers it had absorbed. However, it only fired one ginormous beam, which was made up of all the lasers it ate. As it fired the shot, the three anthro pilots quickly dodged it, while simultaneously trying not to let their hitched riders fall of the wings. Just then, Samus shot multiple missiles from her gunship towards building. While all shots landed a direct hit to the face, none gathered a further result past smoke.

''Gah! This thing doesn't take damage from missiles!'' Samus called out.

''Everyone, spread out! Captain Falcon, try and find anything we can hit from the ground!'' Fox ordered as every ship separated from each other. Every ship was either flying around to find a weak spot, or distracting the building. On the ground, Captain Falcon was circling around the building to find anything that could help them.

''Do you guys see anything?!''Captain Falcon asked his passengers. Just like him, no one could see anything of use. No one spoke.''I'll take that silence as a no.''

''Lucario, can you detect anything?'' Marth asked, realizing there might be a hint within it's aura. Lucario nodded, before closing his eyes. He could sense something powerful coming from inside of the monster. In fact, it was in the direct center of it.

 _''I can detect something within it…it seems to be around the core...''_ Lucario muttered as he concentrated harder. The ambiguous figure slowly came into the shape of a sphere. Suddenly, the jackal shot his eyes up, and looked surprisingly startled. _''The core! That is where the building's weak spot is!''_

''What?'' Multiple voices asked, confused.

 _''The weakness! It can die in one hit if we can hit the weakness inside the building!''_

''But how can we get inside the building?! It's holding us off!'' Fox exclaimed as he dodged another beam. Despite the boosts in acceleration, or his constant maneuvers, none of his teammates fell off the ship. ''There's no way we can get that close to it's mouth, let alone it's core!''

''There must be some other way!'' Red said as he was ridding Charizard's back. Like most others in the air, he was also currently dodging attacks.

''I don't know, that's what I'm trying to figure out!'' Fox yelled at his com.

''Then hurry it up, McCloud! We won't last long!'' Wolf shouted as he dodged an attack. In result of the sharp turn, Pikachu fell off the side.

''PIKAAAAA!'' Pikachu screamed while falling. Noticing the Pokemon in free fall, Falco quickly maneuvers his ship to catch him with his wing.

''You alright pip squeak?'' Falco asked.

''Pika...'' Pikachu said before rubbing off the sweat from his forehead.

* * *

 _ **Meanwhile...**_

John was currently sitting alone inside the arena, thinking to himself. _''I mean, I understand Master Hand's concern, but how can I learn to be brave if he's just going to have me sit on the sidelines? I'm a Smasher, and yet I'm being treated like a child.''_ The boy sighed to himself out of boredom and sadness, since he had no one to talk to. _"I just wish I wasn't too useless...''_ John thought as he placed his hand on his forehead.

''Why, hello there.''

John instantly shot up and looked around. He knew it wasn't Master Hand's voice, yet it sounded familiar.

''Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you.''

From the hallway, John could see a vulpine that looked extremely similar to Fox, with the addition of some age and a pair of sunglasses.

''I just came to find Master Hand, but I guess I've found you instead. I'm James McCloud. And you are?''

''U-u-umm...John...I'm John...'' The boy shyly said, realizing just who the figure was.

''Ah, John. Got it. Listen, I shouldn't really be showing myself to the Smashers. I hope you could keep this a secret about our meeting.'' James said.

''W-why?''

''Well...If this got out, my son Fox would try to find me. I want him to grow up independently from me.''

''H-he's already grown up! What are you talking about?!'' John asked, nearly shouting at the older vulpine.

''Now now, calm down. I didn't mean it like that.'' James said while raising his hands up in a defensive gesture. ''He still has much to learn. Now, can you please tell me where Master Hand is?''

Before John could respond, Master Hand's voice was heard behind James, before coming I to view. ''Ah, James there you are! It seems you've met one our beginner Smashers.''

James turned around in shock.''My god, Hand! Can you please stop doing that!''

Master Hand chuckled, while John simply looked at him with eyebrows raised. Currently, the NDS was in his hand, and was shining light. However, John was distracted with Master Hand and James.

''So Hand, what is this about?'' James asked.

''Oh, it's about the new-comer.'' Master Hand said, completely ignoring John's presence. As he was about to speak up, he felt the light coming from the NDS. So he looked down, and saw a sort of app labeled ''Support'' on the screen.

''Uhh...Master Hand...?'' John asked, not looking up.

''Yes?''

''Um...somethings happened to my NDS...''

''What exactly happened?'' Master Hand asked.

''Well...It started to shine for some reason…and there's something here that I don't was there earlier. It looks like an app, and it's called "Support". What does it mean?'' John asked as he showed the screen to the two.

''Did you just discover a new power by accident?!'' Master Hand asked, shocked.

''Maybe, I don't know!'' John said, as the NDS began to shine again. ''What's happening this time?!''

''NDS?'' James asked, looking to Master Hand for answers. The disembodied hand looked back at James as he began to sweat.

''Umm...well...Let me tell the whole story...''

After Master Hand explained everything to James, the vulpine was simply in shock. Not only did the story shock him, but he had never met an Earthling before, much less one who was a fan of StarFox. It was almost surreal in that sense. Meanwhile, John was still trying to figure out how to stop his NDS from shining.

''So this Siyet and those Glitch Smashers are attacking you, just to get to the boy?'' James asked. Master Hand nodded in response.''I see...''

''This thing won't stop shining!'' John said in a panic.

''Calm down. I think I understand what's going on with this "Support" app.'' Master Hand said.

''You do?''

''Not for sure. We'll have to test it out. Ok, John, go far away from us. All the way to the entrance!'' Master Hand ordered. John looked at him with a confused expression.

''Uh...sure...'' John said as he left the main area.

''So, did it stop shining?!'' Master Hand yelled when John got to his destination. surprisingly, John could hear him clearly.

''Yeah, it did!'' John shouted back.

''I see...'' Master Hand muttered to himself. ''Come back!'' John began to run back to the two. As he got close to them, he noticed that the NDS began to shine once again.

''H-huh?''

''I see how it works. It's reacting.'' Master Hand said.

''Reacting to what?!''

''Perhaps it's one of us. Or maybe it was something you did.''

''What?''

''Look, perhaps you did or said something and that triggered a response from it. It's only a suggestion, but it could be a possibility.''

''Well, before you came, I said that I wished I wasn't useless...''

''That could have been it. Maybe the NDS is simply trying to respond to your pleas.'' Master Hand paused to think for a moment. ''I'm thinking it might be reacting to James.''

''Me?'' James asked raising his brow. John could only see the top of it due to the sunglasses.

''Yes. It could be that the NDS is suggesting you can be his support.''

''But why me?'' James asked while pointing at himself. Master Hand shrugged using two of his fingers.

''I don't know...the NDS seems to be full of surprises.''

John began to approach the two. As he did so, the NDS began to shine brighter, causing him to step back. As the device began to further illuminate, so did James's sunglasses. He took the off to inspect them, revealing his green eyes.

''Okay, this doesn't explain why his sunglasses are glowing!''

''I think it reacting specifically to them…'' James said, trailing off. ''But what does this mean?''

''I think I understand...'' Master Hand said, thinking of the right word to use. ''It's just like an assist trophy! The NDS is reacting to the sunglasses because it sees James as a support! Just like an assist trophy in battle!'' John and James simply stared at him with raised eyebrows. ''James! Would you help John in battle if he calls out for you?!''

''I-I'm afraid I don't understand...''

''Me too! W-what's going on?! And what's an assist trophy?!''

''Calm down. An assist trophy is an item that summons someone to help the user in battle.'' Master Hand said, answering John's question. ''In a way James, the NDS says you're somewhat like an assist trophy to John. Like it says, I'm guessing you can support John in battle.''

''So, the kid can call me out whenever he wants?''

''That's what I'm thinking. But would you help John in battle when he needs it?'' Master Hand asked in a serious tone.

''Depends...''James said, trailing off. ''I can help him out, but it just depends on the situation...''

''But, why would you want to help me?''

''Since you're the owner of that NDS, to protect you is to protect my loved ones. At least from what Hand has told me. That being the case, I'll help you at all costs, no matter the stakes. I can't risk to lose anyone I hold dear, especially my son.'' James said, his voice changing into a more sincere one. As he mentioned Fox, he put his bare hands over his chest.

''So, I assume that means you're joining me?'' John asked. James nodded. ''But, how am I able to call you in for support?''

''What I suggest…'' Master Hand said, coming up with an idea as he spoke. ''…is that you need to connect yourselves in some way, like a handshake or something.'' John and James once again stared at Master Hand in confusion. ''Look, whenever you get close, both the NDS and the sunglasses glow brighter. So, maybe if you make contact, it allows James to support you.''

James and John faced each other confused, but willing. Both walked toward each other as the sunglasses and NDS grew brighter with each passing step. As they reached arms-distance of each other, they gave each other a handshake. They were shocked when their arms became stuck, and the items which were glowing now began to float around them. The three stared amazed as the glowing sunglasses transferred all of it's luminescence over to the NDS. Once the process was compete, their arms separated and each of them grabbed their respective item.

John looked at the support app, and noticed a message had appeared.

''James McCloud was added to support.'' read the message.

''Looks like you have James as a support!'' Master Hand said gleefully. He coughed, then returned to his typical, serious tone. ''Now, you know what you must do...''

* * *

 _ **At the battle...**_

On the horizon of Smash Town, the sun was rising, yet the battle raged on. Although they had been fighting for hours, the Smashers had yet to make a dent in the building they were facing off against. ''God dammit Pup! We can't keep this up much longer!'' Wolf shouted as he barely dodge one of it's attacks. On the ground, Captain Falcon was struggling to avoid the wreckage of collapsing buildings.

''Then what do you propose we do?!'' Fox shouted, losing his patience. This hadn't been the first, or tenth time Wolf said something along those lines. However, he wasn't that far off from the truth. Even though they tried their best to dodge the Glitched's attacks, every one's ship was at critical condition.

''Calm down you two!'' Samus said.

''Calm down?! Our ships are about to fall out of the sky, and we have yet to do damage to that thing! We can't even get to it's weak point!'' Fox shouted again before coughing.

''What the?'' Falco said, noticing an incoming ship on his radar. According to it, the ship was unknown, which only confused Falco further. looked down his radar. ''Hey Fox, another wing is coming.'' He said.

''What?'' Fox said as he too looked down at his radar. The unknown ship seemed to be another Arwing, and it was flying at full speed towards the monster's eye.

''Hold on tight, kid.''James said, who now wore a hoodie jacket.''We're going in the eye.''

''Why don't you have seat belts in the backseat?'' John asked. James ignored the comment as he focused on the monster directly in front of him. The monster building noticed the new ship coming, and shot a beam at it. James instinctively reacted by dodging it using barrel rolls, which he had learned from an old comrade. Eventually, after much dodging, the ship entered the main eye of the building.

''No way! Did it just enter the eye without a problem?!'' Captain Falcon asked, astonished.''They might be as good as Fox, maybe better!''

''Shut up! We don't know who this guy is, so we have to be careful!'' Fox said. ''Lucario, can you sense who it is?''

''No, I could not identify who it was. A strange force was pulling me away. It felt...familiar...'' Lucario explained as he shot an aura sphere, destroying a boulder.

''Familiar? As in what?'' Samus asked.

 _''It felt like the NDS, but I cannot be sure.''_

''You can't say its the kid! The kid is in the mansion!'' Wolf retorted.

 _''It does not explain that familiar power! And I am not sure if it is_ John, _or someone else!''_

''Calm down. We just have to be careful. Whoever this is we'll find out. That, and who's side their on.'' Samus said. Everyone nodded in agreement.

* * *

 _ **Inside the building...**_

The rusty Arwing flew through the darkness, hardly able to navigate. James stared outside his windshield, somewhat shocked. He had seen some dark places in his life, but not to this extent. ''This place could sure use some light, right kid?'' There was no answer. ''Kid?'' James said, turning to John. The boy had swirly eyes, and a spinning head. James frowned, raised his brow through his sunglasses, and sighed. ''Ok, I guess went too overboard with my flying.'' James muttered as he continued to fly through the darkness. The further in he flew, the darker it seemed to get. ''I can't even see a darn thing.'' His Arwing had no light source, so unless something lit up the space for him, he was stuck in perpetual darkness. Suddenly, an energy beam went flying past the Arwing, then another. ''Woah!'' James shouted as he barely dodged the beams.

James clearly heard John's cry, as well as the crash that caused it. ''Good to know your back.'' he said, seemingly only caring whether he was alive or not. Another laser suddenly came up from behind, and James performed another barrel roll. Since there was no warning, John once again banged his head.

''Ouch! Would you stop doing that!'' John said, clearly annoyed.

''We have someone at our tail! Just hold on!'' James said, shooting back at the unknown attacker.

''First things first! Where are we, and why is it so dark?!'' John asked. He began to stand up and walk towards the front of the ship.

''Do you want to bang your head again?!'' John's eyes widened as he quickly grabbed James's seat. ''Thought so.''

As they continued to fly into nothingness, more lasers were being fired at them from several directions. Even with his skill and effort, it was impossible for James to dodge all of them without taking a few hits.

''Where are these shots coming from?!'' James asked with a tone simultaneously distressed and angry. Just then, the Arwing suffered another hit from a laser. The shot shook the ship upon impact.

''I don't know James! Just fly!'' John shouted in fear. James growled as he accelerated to full speed, hoping this barrage of energy beams would end. He looked at his radar. Even though they were being shot at from all sides, there were no signs of enemies. He wondered how this was possible as he began to concentrate back on flying. Once again, the ship was hit with another laser.

''Is there no end to this?!'' John asked, his voice quivering while doing so. His face also seemed to match his tone of voice. Suddenly, the barrage ended, as if John's plea had worked. James was still wary, expecting another attack. His eyes shifted around the cockpit view to see if any any other lasers were being fired.

''Is it over?'' John asked. The vulpine didn't immediately answer, and still wouldn't let his guard down. After about a minute or so, he finally replied.

''I don't know, but keep an eye out for a second.'' James looked down to see how well his shield was holding up. It was currently at thirty one percent.

''Damn...My ship took some heavy damage...'' James said as he slowed down his ship. He sighed as they drifted through the darkness. There was no way for them to tell where they were. It was if they were in a maze with no paths. Eventually, they began to see something in the distance. As they approached it, they made it out to be a sphere of some sort.

''What is that?'' John asked. James just shrugged. ''Maybe it's the life form?''

''Don't know.''

''Try shooting it.'' James glanced at John. He was unsure at first. Eventually, he nodded, turned to the sphere, and pressed the button to fire the laser.

* * *

''Gah!'' Wolf yelled as his ship was hit by yet another laser. ''My Wolfen won't last long!''

''Your not the only one Wolf!'' Fox shouted. By this point, the pilots had dropped their hitch riders off to join Captain Falcon. Their reasoning was that if their ships fell out of the sky, they didn't want to take anyone else down with them.

''Is there nothing we can do?'' Ness asked as he was using his psychic powers to throw a boulder back at the monster. Like everything else they had tried, it proved ineffective.

''We have to relay on that mysterious pilot. Lucario, can you really not tell who it is?'' Red asked.

 _''I am afraid not.''_

''How is everyone?'' Fox asked.

''We're not doing good, Fox. Any more shots, and were gone.'' Falco answered. Fox closed his eyes. For a moment, he pondered on whether or not this was the end.

Fox opened his eyes, ready to say his goodbyes. Suddenly, the monster stopped dead in his tracks. Fox's reaction was similar. Not a muscle in his body moved, not a breath was taken. Time too, seemed to be frozen. After what seemed like an eternity of waiting, the monster suddenly began to roar in pain.

''What the?!'' Wolf asked shocked. Lucario used his aura to sense the monster core. The dark aura that surrounded it was weakening. Along with it, he could see the aura of the mysterious pilot, which seemed to be attacking it. The jackal opened his eye and gave his report.

 _''The pilot is doing damage to the building.''_

''What? You mean he's going to kill it?'' Fox asked as a sincere smile and a tear began to form on his face.

 _''Yes, he is.''_

As James was firing his laser at the sphere, both he and John could feel the building shaking. The sphere was gradually getting smaller and smaller, which only caused more and more shaking.

''I think it's doing damage!'' Suddenly, they heard the monster roar. It's cries bounced off of the walls and only further shook up the space they were in.

''It is!''

James pressed the button again, and a laser directly hit the sphere. After a second, the once ship-sized sphere disappeared into nothingness. The roar seemed to die with it.

''Is it done?''John asked.

''I think so.'' James replied.''Let's go. I think the job is done.'' As they were about to leave, they were distracted by a sound on the roof.

 ***CLINK***

Their eyes turned to the dashboard to see a small stone bouncing down and off the ship. James and John confusingly glanced at each other. Their attention snapped back to the window when multiple stones began to crash into it. Both of their jaws dropped to the floor and all of their eyes widened as they realized what was happening.

''Kid, the building is crumbling around us! Hold on tight while I try to get us out of here!'' James shouted as he accelerated full speed towards a distant light, which he could only hope was the exit.

* * *

 _ **Outside...**_

The Smasher were staring at the building, shocked and amazed at the sight. The monster was frozen stiff, and falling apart from all sides. Suddenly, the ship that had so easily entered minutes before was now racing out of its mouth as it turned to dust. The Arwing sped past the four ships, who were still stunned in amazement. In an instant, the monster was no more and the pilot was too far for them to reach.

''Well that took a while...'' Captain Falcon drowsily said.

''But who was that pilot? Gah! I can't even think straight!'' Fox mumbled to himself. He felt something was familiar about that Arwing, but he couldn't just tell why. It had been a long night of fighting, plus he had almost died. So it wasn't surprising he couldn't come up with an explanation.

''Your probably just your tired, Fox.'' Falco said. He too, was on the verge of passing out, and he too showed it in his voice.

''We all are...'' Marth added.

''Let's just report to Master Hand.'' Samus said. The ships turned around, and headed for the mansion. On the ruined street, a hooded figure was watching them fly away. In fact, he had been watching the whole time, making sure not to get too close. Not only was their scanning software on their ships, but they also had a psychic jackal.

''The child is more capable than I thought...'' Siyet muttered to himself. ''No…it's not the boy. It's the NDS…But the boy is beginning to learn it's powers…This should be interesting...interesting indeed...'' When the ships were out of sight, Siyet opened a dark portal behind him, and walked through it. It closed behind him, leaving the war-torn street devoid of people.

James was forced to escort John to Master Hand's office. The reason was that if he tried to leave John, he would feel an intense pain in his chest. It was if he was being shot by a million point-blank bullets. There was no other solution he could think of besides seeing the Hand about it. The Smashers were still on their way, so he had some time.

As James opened the door to Master Hand's office, they were greeted by the Hand himself, who was wearing a sleeping hat on his knuckle. ''Welcome back! The Smasher gave me the report. Good job!'' James just nodded while John showed a sheepish smile. ''James, you might want to leave now. The Smashers are coming now.''

''One problem...I can't!'' Master Hand looked confused.

''What do you mean?''

''Whenever I try to leave him, my chest would burn! Worse than that, actually!

''I see...John. Check your support list.'' John was confused, but did as he was told. When he saw James on the list, there were two buttons next to his name. They were labeled ''Dismiss'' and ''Apply''.

''I think I'm supposed to dismiss you...'' John said as he tapped the icon. As soon as he did so, James started to glow a bright orange. The old vulpine suddenly turned into a medal of sorts, which displayed a portrait of him. The medal then began to rapidly spin around in a circle, before bursting into glowing particles. After floating for a second or two, the particles suddenly transferred themselves to the NDS screen. Both of the boy and Master Hand started in confusion throughout the process.

''What just happened?'' John asked, confused and concerned. He glanced up at Master Hand for answers, but he just shrugged using two of his fingers. The boy looked at his NDS, and could see James's current status. It read:

 _James McCloud_

 _Current Location: Unknown_

 _Current Condition: Good_

''He must have been sent somewhere else.'' Master Hand suggested suddenly appearing behind John.

''AH!''

''Calm down! There's no need to yell!''

''How do you expect me to react when you show up right behind me?!'' John retorted. He quickly calmed down as he stared at the NDS's screen. ''This thing has strange powers...''

''Indeed it does. But, they are useful. Keep that in mind.'' Master Hand said. John looked at the Hand and nodded his head.

 _''I guess he's right.''_ John thought to himself. _''If it wasn't for the NDS, how would they have taken down that…thing? If that's just a regular ability of it's, who knows what's it's true powers are? I hope it never comes to the point where I'll have to use it, whatever it is... ''_ He sighed as he put away the device in his safe pocket.

* * *

 _ **Later that night...**_

The Smashers had returned back, too tired to even report to Master Hand about the mysterious pilot that just helped them in battle, or the possibility of John's involvement. After the day had passed, they simply forgot to give the Hand the details. He didn't seem to mind. In fact, he was glad they had forgotten. Otherwise, he might be in trouble with Lucario, since he was unable to lie around him. At the moment, dinner was being prepared and the Smashers were in their seats, conversing with one another. The one notable exception was John, who was currently absent.

''Where is John?'' Kirby asked, noticing an empty chair at Lucario's table.

''He doesn't like following orders, does he?'' Fox said, frowning.

''I saw him outside the mansion entrance.'' Peach said. ''Fox? Can you go get him? Master Hand is talking to Wolf.'' Fox sighed as he got up from his seat, and walked out of the dining room.

 _ **Outside the mansion...**_

John was sitting on a bench overlooking a view of Smash Town. Despite the brutal attack from earlier, the city seemed to have already rebuilt itself. However, John didn't wasn't puzzling over that, instead, he was admiring the view. On the street by the mansion, he could see Miis walk by, either smiling or laughing. John too smiled as a familiar song played itself in his mind. It was a deeply special song to him, as it was one he would sing with his family on New Years.

 _''You're the one that never lets me sleep...''_

John got up from the bench, and started walking towards the front gate.

 _''To my mind, down to my soul, you touch my lips...''_

 _''You're the one that I can't wait to see…''_

 _''With you here by my side, I'm in ecstasy...''_

 _''I am all alone without you...''_

John grabbed the gate's bars, but didn't open it.

 _''My days are dark without a glimpse of you...''_

 _''But now that you came into my life, I feel complete...''_

 _''The flowers bloom, my morning shines and I can see...''_

 _''Your love is like the sun, that lights up my whole world...''_

 _''I feel the warmth inside...''_

 _''Your love is like the river, that flows down through my veins...''_

 _''I feel the chill inside...''_

John let go of the gates while looking down. As the song continued in his head, so to did the thoughts and memories of his family.

 _''Every time I hear our music play...''_

 _''Reminds me of the things that we've been through...''_

John turned to face the mansion.

 _''In my mind, I can't believe its true...''_

 _''But in my heart the reality is you...''_

 _''Cause I am alone without you...''_

John began to walk toward the mansion, but stopped halfway. His legs began to shake, and his face began to clench.

 _''My days are dark without a glimpse of you...''_

 _''But now that you came into my life, I feel complete...''_

 _''The flowers bloom, my morning shines and I can see...''_

It was becoming harder and harder for the boy to hold back his tears.

 _''Your love is like the sun, that lights up my whole world…''_

 _''I feel the warmth inside...''_

 _''Your love is like the river, that flows down through my veins...''_

 _''I feel the chill inside...''_

The boy was now at his breaking point. The memories were too much to bear. The thoughts of home were too much to think about. The song was too sentimental. With heavy breathing, he fell to his knees. The boy's eyes couldn't take it anymore, and began to cry.

Up the path to the mansion, the front door opened. Fox was at the entrance, ready to greet the boy.

''Hey, John it's din-'' Fox suddenly stopped when he laid his eyes on the boy. He quickly ran to the weeping figure to see if something had happened.

''John! Are you alright?!'' Fox asked worriedly as he kneed in front of him. The boy didn't respond. Fox placed a hand on his shoulder, not knowing how to respond to the situation.

Out of nowhere, the boy quickly hugged Fox. He latched on to the vulpine as if his life depended upon it. Fox was initially shocked, then became somewhat uncomfortable and confused.

''What happened...?'' Fox asked. Once again, no answer. Fox sighed to himself, and pulled the distressed child further in. The both of them barely moved for what seemed like forever, as one continued to cry into the other.

Between the sobs, Fox thought he could hear whispering. As he perked his ears up to hear better, he realized that the boy wasn't whispering at all. Instead, he was feebly singing.

 _''Y-your love is like the sun, t-that lights up my whole world...''_

 _''I-I feel the warmth i-inside...''_

 _''Your love is like the r-river, that flows down through my veins...''_

 _''I feel the c-_ chill i _-inside...''_

The boy slowly closed his eyes, and fell into a slumber. Fox was still confused, but didn't mind comforting the boy. He lifted his head up, sensing something behind him. When he turned it around, he saw the other Smashers, who had come outside to check on him. No one spoke a word, nor made a sound. After staring at the crowd for some time, Fox looked back down to to the boy, who he noticed was fast asleep. He slowly but surely picked him up with both of his arms. Fox was surprised by just how heavy John was, but it didn't matter. All that mattered at the moment was that the boy is to be placed in his bed. Fox turned to the group so they could see the dozing child. When they realized what was happening, they quietly returned inside. Fox entered the mansion as the sun fell under the horizon.

* * *

 ** _?_**

''The Smashers are quite persistent Master. They have defeated the building Medgor decided to possess.'' Siyet reported.

''Foolish...A useless underling...''

''And the boy has also awakened one of the NDS's powers.''

''Interesting, yet futile.''

''What do you suggest we do, Master?'' Just then the figure revealed himself by floating away from the darkness. It was Glitched doppelgänger to Master Hand. Everything that was white about the original was now silver.

''As of now, We wait...Keep them thinking. Then we shall strike.''

 ** _To be continued_**..

* * *

 ** _Featuring in the next chapter..._**

 _''I'm kinda worried...'' John said, hiding behind Wolf. They were on their way to watch the famous band practice before their performance._

 _'Bout what?'' Wolf asked._

 _''Maybe they might attack us again_ _'' John replied worried._

 _''I'm right here kid. Don't worry.'' Wolf replied. Fox gave a glare at Wolf as he flashed a smirk._

 _''I-I mean, I don't care!''_

* * *

 _''We're very sorry. Master Hand, but most of our band is sick.'' One of_ _Miis_ _replied. ''Without_ them, _we can't perform the concert.''_

 _''I see...''_

 _''M-maybe I can be in the band?'' Everyone turned and stared at John._

 _''You want to participate?'' John nodded._

* * *

 _''HA!'' Fox yelled as he smashed the Glitched, guitar in hand. The guitar broke apart on impact. ''You have a tough skull!''_

 _The four Smasher were surrounded by the Glitched. Everyone involved was in battle stance, waiting for someone to make a move. ''We're in deep trouble.''_

 _''Just attack!'' Wolf shouted as he charged ahead to attack._

* * *

 _ **A/N: As of now, all of the** **chapter** **that was previously written has been edited. Thanks to** **ColinCeption** **a big round of applause for him. He has been helping with The Worlds Connection progress lately so a big thanks to him.**_


	6. Chapter VI:Concert Gone Wrong

_**Chapter 6: Concert Gone Wrong**_

* * *

It had been seven days since the attack of the Glitched. The city was fixed and repaired in miraculous time, thanks to the vigilance of the Miis and the funding from Master Hand. After the attack, people remained somewhat on edge. However, things seemed to simmer down after the city had been put back together. The Smashers meanwhile, resumed their competitive tournaments. At the moment, John was in twenty first place overall due to multiple slip ups including one time where he grenaded himself out of the boundary. The winner was going to be announced next week, and another one would begin soon after that.

And by soon, it meant that it would begin in two weeks. The thought of it shook John in his boots. What made it worse is that he would be fighting in the first match, which would have him pit against Toon Link. And even though he had fought four times already, the boy still had a sense of stage fright, and it still felt as alien to him now as it did during the fight he had with Fox. At the moment, all of the Smashers were practicing their moves on Sandbags in the Training Room. All of them with the exception of John and Fox.

John was in Fox's room. The vulpine was currently roomed with Pikachu, who he didn't mind since both of them had good chemistry between each other. The only problem was that Fox couldn't understand Pikachu very well, so it proved difficult for the two to communicate.

Currently, John and Fox were playing a game of chess. Fox was white while John was black. The boy was surprised that the vulpine played chess, as he hadn't thought chess would exist in the world of StarFox. Not only did he know how to play, John would learn, but he was fairly good at it.

At the moment, Fox was planning out his next move. John had just moved his queen to H3, putting him in check. The vulpine decided to use his bishop in order to block the check. It was quite late in the game, and the chessboard was nearly empty of pieces. John still had control of four pawns, a knight, his queen, and his king. Meanwhile, Fox had three pawns, a bishop, a rook, his queen, and his king.

John decided to move his queen away from danger. Fox smirked as he saw a was to end the match. He moved his rook to C2, which put the black king in check. John responded by moving his king to D4. Fox then moved one of his pawns to E5, again checking the king. The boy frowned as he moved his king to E4. On cue, Fox moved his rook to E2. Once again, it was check for John. The boy took a moment to observe the board before he took his next move. He couldn't capture the pawn since it was being defended by another pawn, so he moved the king to F5. Fox now had him where he wanted. John had failed to notice his queen was at G8. The vulpine shifted it over to G5.

''Checkmate.'' Fox said. John looked down at the board in disbelief. After a few seconds of double checking, he realizes that yes, it was indeed checkmate. He couldn't go anywhere since the queen, the rook, and the king at E7 blocked all escape routes. John kept staring at the board until Fox spoke up.

''Well, that was a good game.''

''Yes, it was.'' John replied.

''Now. Since I won...tell me a bit about more your self.'' Fox said as he began to relax in his seat. John nodded, realizing a deal was a deal. Before the game had began, Fox bet that if John won, he would tell the boy more about his personal life. If John lost however, he would have to tell him about life on Earth. John thought it wasn't fair, since he was bad at chess, but he agreed to the terms. Even though he lost, which he was expecting, he was surprised he lasted this long against Fox.

John readjusted himself in his chair, trying to replicate Fox's position. ''What exactly did you want to know?''

''Just the basics, I guess. Earth seemed like an interesting place while I was there, so I wanted to know what life was like.''

''It's rather plain, to be honest. Everybody tries to have a normal life for the most part. We all go to school, get good grades, get a degree, get a good job etc.'' John explained.

''No wars?''

''No, not at the moment. I don't think World War Three is gonna happen anytime soon.''

''World War Three? That sounds pretty bad. And you've already had two of them?''

''Yeah. I mean, I wasn't alive for those, but from I've heard, they were pretty bad.''

''Hopefully you won't be there for the third.'' Fox paused a moment, before coming up with another question.

''Have any friends there?'' Fox asked. John only looked away in response. Fox raised his eyebrows, not expecting that kind of reaction. ''Do you not have any?''

''Well...I have some, but they aren't technically friends...'' John replied in a low tone.

''What do you mean by that?''

''Um...You see…In school, my classmates are kind of a racist towards me. I'll leave it at that for now.''

Fox's face was now tensing up out of anger. ''They're quick to judge, the bastards.'' Fox said, speaking in a low growl.

John picked up on the anger in his voice. ''I-I at least had some friends that helped me!''

''But it doesn't give them the right! What were they judging about you anyway?!'' Fox asked in an almost demanding tone. John was hesitant to tell, since he really didn't want to talk about it. Fox saw that hesitation on his face, and let out a sigh. His rage-filled expression calmed down into a more sincere one.

''Look, I won't force you to tell me if you don't want to, but I also want to know that you trust me.''

''I-I trust you Fox, I really do...'' John replied with a low tone.

''I know you do, but it feels like you don't fully trust me yet.''

John looked down. The boy felt the vulpine's hand on his shoulder as he looked back up. He could see Fox had a small smile on his face.

''If you ever need someone to talk to, I'm always available. Okay?''

''Okay.''

Fox was about to say something, when he was interrupted by the sound of someone knocking on the door.

''Yes?'' Fox called.

''It's Marth. Master Hand's instructed me with telling everyone to come to the command room.''

John and Fox glanced at each other. Both of them had the same question in mind, and neither one of them knew the answer. Fox then decided to ask Marth, to see if he knew. ''What for?''

''We are planning something. We were all invited to a concert practice.''

''Concert? Are we going to watch a band practice a new song or something?'' Fox asked, confused.

''Apparently so. Like I said, we are planning it out in the command room, so please head there as soon as possible. Also, do you have John with you? Wolf doesn't know where he is.''

''John's with me. We'll start heading there now.''

''Good.'' Marth said as he left to go notify the next room.

Fox stood up from his seat. ''C'mon let's go. Get behind me and stay close.'' John nodded as the two left the room.

Everyone in the command room had already taken their seats and were in the midst of chatting with one another when Fox and John entered. The boy noticed Wolf, sitting with clenched fists and a tensed face. John felt shivers going down his spine, knowing full well that Wolf would scold him. Fox looked over at his face, noticed the concern, and tried to calm him down.

''Don't worry, I'll explain it to him.''

As Fox and John approached him, Wolf shifted his gaze towards the vulpine. Then, he noticed John behind him.

''There you fucking are! Do you know how long I was looking for you!'' Wolf nearly shouted as he stood up from his chair. As he began to aggressively approach John, Fox stood in between the two.

''Wolf, calm down. He was with me the whole time. I invited him to hang out in my room.''

Wolf shifted his piercing glare at Fox, then back at John. ''It would have been appreciated if the kid told me beforehand!'' John looked away in regret. After all, Wolf wasn't wrong. He had just walked away from him while Wolf was training for the tournament.

''I-I'm sorry.'' John said with a sad expression. Wolf growled under his breath, then breathes heavily before mostly regaining his composure.

''Whatever, next time don't waste my time.'' Wolf grumbled as he left the two. John looked away, still downtrodden. In his mind, he could have made a more proper apology. Fox meanwhile, simply sighed.

''Don't worry, he's not mad anymore.'' Fox said. John looked back at Fox. ''Go on, I'm sure he won't hurt you.'' John slowly nodded as he made his way to his seat, which was right next to Wolf.

It was an awkward moment between the two. John was still ashamed that he had made his protector mad. ''To be honest,'' he thought, ''he always looks mad.''

Neither of them spoke a word with each other. John took a glance at Wolf, and he was still in the same position he was in last time he checked. His arms were crossed, and his one eye was closed. John then turned his gaze from Wolf to the other Smashers, who had gone back to having their own conversations, after they had been distracted by Wolf shouting.

''Are you gonna be silent over there, or are you gonna say something?'' Wolf growled. The suddenness of it alone made John jump. which made. He looked at Wolf, who still sat in the same position as before, not even opening his eye.

''U-u-umm...'' John felt muttered, as he was in a state of panic. It was only heightened when Wolf opened his eye, and aimed it's gaze on the boy. ''W-well...U-uh...''

''Do you want me to teach you how to speak properly kid?'' Wolf asked, clearly annoyed.

''I-I'm really sorry ok?! I-I know you're still mad.'' John said, finally gaining the courage to apologize again, and properly this time. Wolf just stared at him.

''Wasn't one apology enough, kid?''

''W-well...That wasn't a proper one...'' John replied, looking away. This time it wasn't due to Fear wasn't the case he just hasn't built enough confidence to talk eye-to-eye.

''I already forgive you kid, and one apology is enough.'' Wolf said.''If you haven't been kidnapped or killed, then I ain't mad.'' At that point, Wolf stopped talking, and closed his eye once again. John sighed, glad wasn't too mad. He was still chilling though, with that angry look permanently stuck to his face. John tried to distract himself from that image by listening in on other conversations. They mostly revolved in depth around the invitation they had received. In fact, they were so in depth with their chatter, that most of them failed to notice Master Hand floating his way into the room.

''Attention Smashers! Im afraid I'm going to have to ask you to pause your conversations.'' Master Hand called out as soon as he closed the door behind him. Everyone hushed their conversations and perked up their ears.

''Now as I'm sure you've all heard, we have been invited to watch a band practice. Specifically, to watch the Fine Brothers perform their new song, ''World of Light.'' As soon as he finished his sentence, excited chit-chattering began across the room. John was confused, since he had never heard of the Fine Brothers. He had also never heard that every Smasher loved their music, even Wolf. Their music was so loved by the Smashers in fact, that songs of theirs were sometimes played during fights.

Master Hand cleared his throat (or at least made the sound of one doing so) to once again hush the Smasher's conversations. ''Now, I won't go into too much in detail about it at the moment. After all, due to recent events, and the upcoming tournament, you might not even want to go.'' Every Smasher gave each other looks when he said that. ''He must be seriously out of touch with our personal lives,'' they thought, if he thinks we're going to pass on this.''

Master Hand noticed the odd looks the Smashers were giving each other while they grinned. He briefly wondered if it was because of something he said, then decided to just ignore it, and continue his speech. ''Anyways,'' Master Hand finally said, ''the decision is all yours to make. Shall we go, or not? Majority votes wins.''

''Master Hand!'' Marth called out, catching the attention of everyone, including his target audience. ''I'm afraid some us have to stay behind if we do plan on going. What if the Glitched attack while we aren't present? They could destroy smash town.''

Marth had raised a good point, and everyone was thinking about it. They wanted to go, but what if they did indeed come back? Plus, the Fine Brothers studio was quite far from the Smash Mansion. It would take at least two hours to get there by riding a bus.

''I'm afraid he's right, Mater Hand. We can't risk the safety of the citizens.'' Ike said.

''You do have a point...'' Master Hand said, as he was considering what to do. ''Alright!'' He said upon coming up with a plan. ''I need everyone's decision right now! Do we go to the practice?!''

''I guess. It's a-worth it to go see it.'' Mario said.

''It's a good suggestion and all, but who would be staying behind?'' Fox asked, bringing the topic back.

''Well, who would care to volunteer?'' Master Hand asked. As Wolf was about to raise his hand, Master Hand crushed his hopes. ''Unfortunately, Wolf, I'm afraid you're joining the trip by default-''

''What?! You can't just keep on controlling me, Hand!'' Wolf shouted.

''If you had let me finish, O'Donnell, you would have seen that's not the case.'' Master Hand frustratingly said. ''As I was saying, you're going the trip by default…if John would like to go. After all, you are his protector. Now, wouldn't it be odd for someone's protector to be several hours away from the person their supposed to protect?'' Wolf only stared at him and growled under his breath.

''That's what I thought. Now...'' Master Hand said, turning to the boy. ''...John, would you want to go?'' The boy slowly nodded his head, unsure of himself. ''It's settled then.'' Master Hand said. ''Wolf, your going.'' Wolf let out a growl, but Master Hand decided to ignore him.

''Now, who's willing to volunteer to stay back?'' Master Hand asked again. Marth was the first one to raise his hand, followed by Ike. After that, hands began rising one by one, in an almost domino-like effect. By the end of it, there were eighteen Smashers with their hands high in the air. Wolf followed the hands with his eyes to see if any of them connected to Fox. To his dismay, none of them were. The realization that Fox would be going with him only made his angrier than he had been before.

Master Hand counted the number of people who had and hadn't raised their hands. The total he had gotten for the latter was fifteen. ''So, you're going to go to the practice?'' Master Hand said, addressing those fifteen Smashers. They all nodded in agreement.

''Alright then. If you'll follow me, I'll explain the specifications, and get us a bus. Then I'll explain we shall head to our destination. The rest are you are dismissed.'' Master Hand said, before leaving the command room. The fifteen Smashers followed suit to go get ready, while the rest stayed back inside the command room.

According to Master Hand, anyone who would be going on the trip had to wear formal attire. As they waited in the lobby, Wolf grunted in regards to what he was wearing. In his mind, at the moment, nothing seemed more uncomfortable to him than the silver polo he was wearing. Besides the trip itself, the inclusion of Fox, and the outfit, the fact that there were mostly kids partaking in the trip was also bugging the lupine. He growled to himself out of sheer annoyance. John took notice of his frustration. .''W-what's wrong, Wolf?'' John shyly asked. Wolf didn't respond, or even act like he had heard the boy. shyly asked, but Wolf didn't respond. Fox, who was currently folding his sleeves, heard what John asked from behind him.

''Oh, Wolf isn't too keen on wearing anything that isn't armor'' Fox said, showing a smirk. ''He thinks that without it, I'll shoot him in the back at first chance I get.'' Wolf checked his rival's hands to make sure there wasn't a blaster in one of them. He then darted his gaze to make eye contact with the vulpine.

''Shut up.'' Wolf snarled. Fox simply rolled his eyes.

''Can you guys not fight during the trip?'' A familiar voice said. The rivals and the boy turned around to find Ness, still wearing his signature red cap, albeit with a more formal outfit to go with it.

''You know, I think I prefer that to what you usually wear...'' John admitted.

''Are you saying you don't like my clothing?'' Ness asked.

''N-no!''

''He's not saying he doesn't like it, but he thinks you look weird with the set of clothes you usually wear.'' Fox explained for John since his words were beginning to fail him again.

''Oh, that's fine. You know, I get that one all the time.'' Ness replied.

''Weird?'' John asked, once again able to speak.

''Yeah, weird. I don't know what it is though.''

An awkward moment of silence followed, before Fox broke it. ''To be honest, seeing you in that suit looks strange on you, since it's so normal.'' Fox admitted.

''No one asked you!'' Ness said. Fox decided to keep quiet before he wound Ness up any further. At that moment, the bus had already rolled up to the gate, but the Smasher's chattering blocked out the noise. The bus driver inside was confused why nobody had noticed him pull up, so he decided to do the one thing that always grabbed people's attention:

HONK! HONK! HONK!

The sound of the horn, just like the bus driver expected, instantly turned the Smasher's attention to the door.

''It looks like our ride is here. Master Hand's going to meet us up at the studio.'' Fox said. The vulpine then began to walk towards the door. Everyone followed suit.

Walking down the stairs, everyone noticed a blue bus parked near the gate. Fox, who was at the very front of the group stopped before it as the door as the opened. They could see a mii sitting in the driver seat. ''Good morning.'' Fox said to the driver.

''Good morning to you, Smasher.'' The bus driver replied. ''Master Hand informed me that you're going to the Fine Brother's Studio. Ive calculated the drive should take about two to three hours. So hop in, and get yourselves comfortable.''

Every smasher greeted and thanked the bus driver as they got on, one by one. The human was about to step foot on the bus, but Wolf quickly grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him back.

''Hey!'' John said in a protesting manner.

''Oh, shut up.'' Wolf replied. The lupine turned to his rival, sensing he had something to say ''What is it, McCloud? Make it quick!''

Fox rolled his eyes, knowing the lupines reasons. ''Fine. Did you guys bring your weapons?''

''Why do you ask?'' Wolf asked as he eyed his rival. He was once again getting the feeling that the vulpine might try to get a shot at him.

''Before you ask, no. I didn't bring my blaster to shot it at you. I brought it for our safety and John's. Now I'll ask you again; did you bring your blaster?'' Fox asked in more serious tone.

Wolf rolled his eyes, thinking it was ridiculous that he had to ask such a stupid question. He knew the answer as much as the lupine did. ''Of course I brought it. I wouldn't go anywhere without it. Happy?'' Fox continued to stare at him, before he turned to the human.

''How about you John? Did you bring yours? John?'' Fox asked, dropping the serious looks replacing it with a more sincere tone and expression.

''I-I didn't know it was necessary...'' John said.

''John, with our current situation, you have to bring it with you.''

''Sorry...''John apologized, looking down in shame. Fox let out a sigh.

''It's alright, just stay close to us and you'll be fine.'' Fox said before glaring at his rival. As if he were asking why he didn't mention that to the boy. Wolf shrug as a smirk formed on his muzzle.

''Are you guys just going to stand there?'' The bus driver rang in. All three of the Smashers outside looked into the door to see the bus driver waiting for a response. ''You know, if you want to stay, just tell me.''

Fox shook his head. ''No, we're going. Sorry for the wait.'' He then turned to the two behind him. ''C'mon let's go.''

The vulpine stepped in the bus, followed by Wolf and John. They noticed that several Smashers were looking at them with impatient faces, but no one decided to say anything. The bus was a two-seater, and had been already been practically filled. The only seats left were an empty two-seater, and one next to Red. Fox took the latter option, while John and Wolf were forced sit next to each- other. As the bus began to move away from the mansion, John looked at it through the window. Even when it was out of site, John continued to look in that direction, as his eyes began to feel heavy.

Some hours had passed, and they were close to their destination. John was currently sleeping. Since he gotten up early in the morning, he figured that it would be okay to take a nap. As the boy slowly woke up from his slumber and opened his eyes, he felt that he was being held by the shoulder. Whatever it was that was on him was something heavy. The boy glanced at his shoulder and saw a silver paw with sharp claws grabbing onto his shoulder. He instantly jumped ,thinking that Glitch Wolf had gotten a hold of him. In reality, it was just regular Wolf, who had also fallen asleep. During his panic, John didn't realize it was regular Wolf, and accidentally headbutted him on the chin.

That headbutt caused Wolf to jolt up from his sleep. ''Ah! what the hell kid?!'' Wolf said with a tone that mixed surprise, anger, and pain. The lupine placed his hand on his chin to feel where the pain was.

''S-sorry! I freaked out when I saw your claws! I thought you were a Glitched...a-and...t-that happened...'' John explained. He was sincerely trying to be calm, but the angry glare the lupine was giving him wasn't helping. ''L-look, I didn't mean to headbutt you, t-that was just me f-freaking out when I saw your claws!'' John said, once again trying to explain the situation.

Wolf let out a low growl. ''I was holding you so you wouldn't fall over in your sleep. Sorry for showing a little concern for you.'' Wolf replied coldly.

John was caught off guard by the words that came from Wolf's mouth. But he didn't pay attention to them at the moment, because he was still dealing with an angry lupine. ''I-I really didn't mean it. I s-swear.'' John said in a last ditch effort to have Wolf understand him.

Wolf just stared at him before he grunted. ''Whatever.'' Following that, Wolf simply looked away from the boy. As John did the same, he realized just how badly he and Wolf got along. ''He cares care about me sometimes,'' John thought ''but most of the time, it seems like he couldn't care less. I want to get on good terms with him, but I can't get close to him without screwing up and pissing him off.''

As the bus stopped, the bus driver called out "This is our stop!'' to his passengers. Each Smasher got out, paying their fares as they left. All the Smashers stood up, getting ready to step out of the bus. Since Wolf and John sat in the back, they were the last to leave. ''Have fun, I'll be waiting!'' The bus driver said as the door closed. The Smashers looked at each other before turning to the studio before them. It was a large circular building, built as if it were a soccer stadium. The group inspected the building for some time, before being interrupted by a voice from behind.

''Are you guys gonna just stand there?!'' The voice said. The group of Smashers turned around to see the bus driver staring at them with an annoyed look on his face.

''Were you watching us?'' Red asked the bus driver. The bus driver started to sweat before the bus door closed again. Almost immediately after, the bus sped off on the road that led behind the building. Everyone stood in silence for a few seconds before turning to each other with looks of confusion and mutterings of the phrase "What just happened?'' Since no one could answer that question, they simply shook their heads and headed for the studio.

The Smashers were met with a cold breeze as they entered the building. The lobby they entered looked nothing like they had expected, since it lacked any indication that it was in a music studio. It was ordinary at best, and incredibly dull at worst. After looking around the room, they spotted a Mii receptionist sitting at a desk. As the group walked towards her, they noticed she was staring at her phone out of boredom. She also failed to notice the smashers approaching her.

''Uh, excuse me? You might burn your device if you stare at it for too long.'' Fox said. That seemed to snap her out of her trance. She looked up to see who was speaking to her, but was taken aback at the site of the fifteen Smashers before her.

''Oh my God, Im so sorry!'' The Mii said, quickly attempting to sit straight. Her glasses fell off as she sprang up, and tried to catch them. However, they kept slipping off of her grasp before she finally got a good grip on it. She then quickly placed her glasses on, but they were upside down. Wolf chuckled at this, and all the Smasher gave him a glare, with the exception of John.

''Sorry to a-startle you, but we came to a-watch a performance.'' Mario said, as the receptionist correctly re-adjusted her glasses.

''O-Oh...um...'' The Mii mumbled out.

 _''Is something the matter?''_

She looked at Lucario, then the rest of the Smasher.''W-well, Master Hand's already arrived, a-and is speaking with the producer. You m-may want to see what's going on...''

''Okay...Where are they exactly?'' Ness asked.

''O-oh! Just go to the fourth floor, then turn left. You can't miss it. There's an elevator you can take.'' The Mii said, pointing to the elevator.

''Thank you.'' Fox said as the Smashers headed for the elevators. There were two of them, and since they were fifteen of them, one couldn't support their weight. So, they divided themselves into two groups. The adults would go in the right elevator while the children would go in the left. Since Wolf was his protector, John was forced to join with the adults. When the two groups reached the fourth floor, they turned left as instructed, and were greeted by a door with the word "Producer" on it.

From the other side of the door, they could hear Master Hand, and who they presumed to be the producer talking with each other. As Mario gave a slight knock on the door, the chattering stopped.

''Come in.'' A voice said. Mario opened the door and was met with Master Hand and a Mii with a funky haircut.

''Hello Mario, Smashers. Come on in.'' The director said. Those in the front decided to take up his invitation, while those in the back realized the room was too small for all of them to fit in it. Most of the Smashers who made it into the room were kids, although some adults also made it in. Among those were Fox and Wolf, who felt that they were packed too tightly together. Of course, half of that feeling was based of the fact that they hated each other, and that they were afraid the other was going to shoot them when they weren't looking.

As they all got situated, the director cleared throat, and began to speak. ''I am sorry to say that the practice has been canceled, and so has the concert.'' Most of the Smashers were shocked at the news, with the exception of Wolf.

''W-w-w-w-what?!'' Luigi asked.

''WHY?!'' Both Ice Climbers screamed at the director, much to annoyance of most of the adults.

''We're very sorry, Master Hand, but most of our band is sick.'' A Mii said, ignoring the previous cries. ''Without them, we can't perform the concert.''

''I see...'' Master Hand said, disappointment in his voice.

''M-maybe I can be in the band?'' A meek voice near the back of the room said. Everyone in front turned around to see John looking for an answer.

''Did I hear that right? You want to participate?'' The director said. John nodded sheepishly in response.

''Sorry if I'm doubting you, but what exactly can you do?'' The director asked. As John was about to answer, he noticed that everyone who could see him was now staring at him with raised eyebrows. He could even sense that feeling from Master Hand, who didn't even have eyebrows, let alone a face.

''W-well...I-I can sing?'' John said, flustered. The human couldn't hear it, but in the background, Wolf was chuckling to himself. Fox gave him a deadly glare, which made the lupine stop, thinking he'd be shot if he continued.

''Listen, I can't just have someone substitute based off of what they say. If you say you can sing, you're going to have to prove it.''

John looked unsure, and stared up at Master Hand for reassurance. The Hand bobbed and down, his way of nodding. John then looked back at the director ''O-okay...'' he said. The boy then took a deep breath, and began to sing the only song that could come to mind.

 _''You're the one that never lets me sleep...''_

 _''To my mind, down to my soul, you touch my lips...''_

 _''You're the one that I can't wait to see…''_

 _''With you here by my side, I'm in ecstasy...''_

 _''I am all alone without you...''_

 _''My days are dark without a glimpse of you...''_

 _''But now that you came into my life, I feel complete...''_

 _''The flowers bloom, my morning shines and I can see...''_

 _''Your love is like the sun, that lights up my whole world...''_

 _''I feel the warmth inside...''_

 _''Your love is like the river, that flows down through my veins...''_

 _''I feel the chill inside...''_

Everyone listening to the boy thought he doing really well, including the director. Since they they were so fixated on his singing, no one had seemed to notice that Fox had his ears at the back of his head, instead of pointing up like he usually had them.

 _''Every time I hear our music play...''_

 _''Reminds me of the things that we've been through...''_

 _''In my mind, I can't believe its true...''_

 _''But in my heart the reality is you...''_

 _''Cause I am alone without you...''_

 _''My days are dark without a glimpse of you...''_

 _''But now that you came into my life, I feel complete...''_

 _''The flowers bloom, my morning shines and I can see...''_

 _''Your love is like the sun, that lights up my whole world…''_

 _''I feel the warmth inside...''_

 _''Your love is like the river, that flows down through my veins...''_

 _''I feel the chill inside...''_

 _''Your love is like the sun, t-that lights up my whole world...''_

 _''I feel the warmth inside...''_

 _''Your love is like the river, that flows down through my veins...''_

 _''I feel the chill inside...''_

When John finished the song, the room was silence for a period of time. Suddenly, the room burst into applause. It seemingly went on forever, before finally settling down. When it did, the boy showed a small smile.

''Kid, you really know how to sing! To be honest, I didn't expect you to be able to pull that off! Say kid, how'd you learn how to sing anyway?'' The director asked.

''W-well…My mom is a singer, so I guess that talent got passed down to me...'' John answered timidly.

''I see. Well, I think I'd be a fool if I didn't have you sing for the band!'' The director told everyone in the room.

''Well the kid isn't going to fill in for an entire band Janes! ''One of the Miis interjected, addressing the director. ''Besides him, all we have is Louis on piano!'

''I'm sure we can do something about that.'' Master Hand replied. ''It would be a waste to throw away what you were planning.''

''But do we have enough time?'' A Mii asked.

 _''When will the concert begin?''_ Lucario asked, injecting himself into the conversation.

''The concert's August first.'' Janes said.

''We still have a week before the concert, right? That's more than enough time!'' Red said with determination in his voice.

''Well, getting a band together is our main problem. We can't just pull it off with Louis and the kid. We'd need more people to make a decent band.'' A Mii said.

''I'm sure we can vouch for it.'' Master Hand replied.

''Are you sure?'' Janes asked, concern visible in his voice.

''Of course! The Smashers are always willing to help!'' Master Hand said. Just about all of the Smashers responded with something that would prove his case, like ''Of course we are! '' and ''Always!''. The only one who didn't follow this trend was Wolf, who Master Hand could hear him grunting.

''Take Wolf over there, for example. I'm sure he'd love to join!'' Master Hand said.

Wolf stared at Master Hand as soon as he heard his name. ''When did I sa-''

''Would anyone else want to volunteer?'' Master Hand asked, ignoring the lupine's protest.

''I guess, I'll join. I have some experience playing some instruments.'' Fox said. John immediately wondered how Fox would haved learn to play music.

''I'll join in too, it seems fun.'' Red said.

''Hold on a fucking minute!'' Wolf yelled loudly. Everyone winced at the sound of it, save for Master Hand, who wasn't even fazed by it.

''Yes, O'Donnell? Can I help you?'' Master Hand asked in a teasing and mocking tone.

''I didn't sign up go to this concert in the first place, and I certainly didn't fucking sign up to be a part of it!'' Wolf shouted with anger. His face was turning red with it in fact, all though it was hardly visible through his silver fur.

''Oh, but you did. You agreed to be John's guardian, did you not?'' Master Hand said, only pushing Wolf's anger.

''I did, and you know what?! I'm taking that back! You can cut the fucking deal because I'm done with this fucking bullshit!'' Wolf said as he turned around, ready to up and leave.

''Coward.'' Master Hand said. Wolf stopped dead in his tracks, and slowly turned to face Master Hand.

''What?!'' Wolf asked, growling. Most of the Smashers backed away, with the exception of Fox, who just stood in front of John in case Wolf went berserk.

''You heard me. You're a coward. We had a deal, and you backed out of it.'' Master Hand said. At this point, Wolf was furious.

''Shut your mouth!''

''Your in no position to say that to me. You're just a pathetic coward who can't even go through with the task I gave you. And for that, you have no right to shout at me, let alone gain your freedom.''

''What do you mean?'' Wolf asked. His face, and well as his demeanor, lost most of its anger. His ears also perked up at the sound of the word ''freedom''. Seeing this sudden change amused Master Hand, who decided to drop his serious act.

''How about this? If you can complete this task, then I'll let you leave Smash Bros. You can go back to your world, and, I'll still throw in the seven hundred and fifty thousand credits.

''Mater Hand are you a-sure about this?'' Mario said, stepping forward.

Master Hand looked down at the plumber. ''Why, of course! The grumpy lupine seems tired of us. So, I'm giving him this chance.''

Wolf just stared at Master Hand, ignoring the fact that he had called him a "Grumpy Lupine".

 _''I can get out of this hellhole, and keep the cash, and all I have to do is make sure this kid doesn't die?''_ Wolf thought to himself _. ''Sounds like a great deal, but then again, so did the last one. I bet the Hand's going to find some way to scam me out of what he's promising. But if he won't, and I pass up, I'd be missing out on the deal of a lifetime. Might as well try.''_ Wolf then looked back up at a Master Hand. ''Fine. I'll take your deal. Everyone in your posse antagonizes me me anyways, so seeing me go will be a blessing for them too.'' As if on cue, most of the Smasher glared at the lupine, but Wolf did nothing but snort. ''See what I mean?''

''Well, maybe if you weren't such a jerk, we wouldn't have this problem, now would we?'' Ness said as he crossed his arms.

''Y-yeah!'' Lucas followed up.

''Now, now, let's not escalate this into a fight.'' Master Hand said. Every Smasher expects, John and Peach either snorted, frowned or just looked away. Master Hand turned to the director. The Hand noticed Janes hid under his desk, probably scared that a physical fight was going to erupt. Master Hand's sweat dropped as he approached the director. ''I am terribly sorry about this. We should continue this tomorrow.'' Janes slowly nodded, still slightly terrified concerning the lupine. The Smashers left the office to head back to the mansion, unaware that a Glitched was watching them.

 ** _Later that evening…_**

When the Smashers returned to the Mansion, Master Hand informed the Smashers there of the current situation with the concert. After also discussing with those who went to the studio, it was decided that four of the Smashers were going to be substituting for the band: John, Wolf, Fox, and Red. Everyone seemed to agree, except Wolf, who kept it to himself, and Jigglypuff, who argued why she wasn't going, since she was a good singer. The rest of the night went in like normal. Everyone had their dinner, settled down, then went to their rooms to sleep.

It was late at night now, and Wolf couldn't seem to sleep. He was standing at his window, gazing at the city currently night time, as the cool wind blew against his fur. He turned his head to stare at John sleeping in his bed, and he let out a sigh.

''Christ, this kid can be a real headache sometimes...'' Wolf muttered as he shook his head. He then turned his gaze back to the city, which was sleeping as peacefully as the boy. ''I've got to admit, the city's kinda nice to look at...''

''Wolf...? Why are you awake...?'' John asked drowsily as he woke up. The boy glanced up at the hanging clock.''It's 2:04 A:M...''

 _''He must have heard me talking to myself...''_ Wolf thought. ''Just go to bed, kid.'' Wolf said, still keeping his gaze at the city.

John didn't listen. He approached the lupine and looked at him, wondering what exactly he was looking at. John turned his gaze to where Wolf's was, and realized what he was looking at. For a moment, the boy stared at the lit up, yet quiet city. He had never seen it like this before, and the sight of it amazed his. ''Woah...'' John said as he was admiring the view. Wolf just shook his head. ''It's kinda nice to look at...''

''I guess it is. Now cmon, go to bed.'' Wolf replied, annoyed. John looked up at Wolf and noticed he wasn't looking back.

''Yeah...but, why aren't you sleeping yet?''

''Why do you care?'

''I-It's just a question...'' John replied, looking away. Wolf just grunted as he closed the window. The lupine turned around and sat on his bed.

''I was just thinking. That's all.'' Wolf said, laying down on his bed as he put the cover on.

''About what?'' John asked curiously.

''Why don't you stick your nose somewhere else?'' Wolf asked, as he turned away from the boy, somewhat angry. somewhat angry.

''Y-you don't have to be angry, you know?'' John said, a bit scared. Wolf gave no response. John figured he didn't want to speak or talk for that matter, although he was disappointed that he didn't say anything. The boy went to his bed and laid down. He spoke again before falling asleep. ''S-sorry for all the things I did to annoy you today…I never meant any of them...''

Wolf heard the boys apology but didn't respond for a long time. He then let out a soft sigh before closing his eyes. ''It's fine...''

 _The next morning..._

The four Smashers that were on their way to the studio, wearing the formal wear they wore the day before. They were currently walking to the studio, since the bus had broken ran out of gas about a mile before. As they made their way there, John spoke up.

''I'm kinda worried...'' John said, hiding behind Wolf.

'Bout what?'' Wolf asked.

''The Glitched. Maybe they might attack us again.'' John replied, worried.

''I'm right here kid. Don't worry.'' Wolf replied. Fox gave a glare at Wolf as he flashed a smirk. Red just stared at the two canines.

''Alright guys, don't start a fight. We need to go and meet with the director, Janes I think?'' Red said in an unsure manner.

''Yeah, that's right.'' Fox replied.

''Well, let's get this over with!'' Wolf said in an aggravated voice as he speed walked to the building. Fox glared at his rival again before shaking his head. ''C'mon, let's go.'' Fox said as he increased his pace to catch up with Wolf. Red and John just looked at each other with weird expressions. Red then shrugged before catching up with the two adults, with John following suit.

As they entered the building, Fox approached the receptionist. ''Excuse me?''

The Mii looked up. ''Oh, hello!'' She said with an energetic expression.

Fox placed one of his arms on the counter. ''Hello again. Is the director here?'' He asked. Fox was somewhat confused, since the receptionist's attitude was a complete contrast to their first meeting. He simply chalked it up to her having a better day than yesterday. Or coffee.

The Mii nodded. ''Yes, he's in.''

Fox nodded, taking his arm off the counter. ''Thanks.'' He said. Fox then gestured the other Smashers to join him at the elevator. The doors of the elevator door closed in front of them, and the group made there way up. As they left the receptionist behind, she dropped he energetic face for a bored and tired one. She then face-palmed onto her desk, and promptly fell asleep.

The Smashers stopped in front of the office. Fox knocked on the door, waiting for a response from Janes or one of the other Miis they had seen.

''Come in!'' A familiar voice said from the other side of the door. Fox opened the door and walked in, with the other Smashers following suit. They found Janes sitting in a chair and drinking a cup of coffee, clearly ready for their arrival.

''Ah, hello! Master Hand told me you were coming. Take a seat.'' Janes said. The four Smashers sat down in chairs laid out for them, with the two kids sitting in the front row, and the adults sitting in the back.

''Now as you all know, the concert is gonna be on August first, which means we have six days to practice.''

''W-what is the song am I gonna sing?''John asked nervously.

''You're going to be singing a song called ''Lifelight", which is about you all." Janes said, while making a gesture to indicate the Smashers. "It's supposed to be meant for a female singer, but since she's sick, you should do." Janes then turned to face the group as a whole. "Now, I believe Master Hand has told you that you're going to be staying at a hotel that's near here."

Fox decided to speak for the group. ''Yes, he's told us about this. He figured it would save time, since we won't have to waste time making the trip here.''

''Right. Anyways, since the kid's going to be singing, we're going to need the rest of you to play instruments. Do any of you know how to play anything?'' Janes asked. Fox was the first to speak up.

''I have some experience with a few instruments.''

''Can you play the piano? We're going to need that to fit the style we're going for.'' Janes asked. Fox looked away.

''I know a little about it, so it's worth a shot.'' Fox replied.

''Alright, good enough. How about you two?'' Janes said, facing towards Wolf and Red. Neither of them said a word.

''Okay...'' Janes awkwardly said. ''Red, I want you to try to play the guitar. And Mr. O'Donnell …see what you can do with drums. Since Peter isn't around, we can't play that metal box of his, which composes music. Believe me, I have no idea how that thing works myself. It'd be much easier for you guys to learn the song using real instruments.'' Both Red and Wolf nodded, but the lupine grunted beforehand.

''Alright. So, here are the lyrics.'' Janes said, handing them over to John. ''There's a prep room where you can practice. As for you, Mr. McCloud, I'll have Louis teach you the base of piano.''

''Fox is fine.''

''I'll keep that in mind. Now, as for you two, I'll have Louis guide you as well. You guys and Fox will be practicing in the music room, which is right across from the prep room. C'mon, I'll show you where it is.'' Janes said as he started to walk towards the door. The four Smashers followed suit.

Five days later…

Thought the last several days, the Smashers had been practicing seemingly non-stop. Meanwhile, Janes had called in some professional musicians to help bring the song to its full potential. This sparked a mini-argument between Janes and Wolf, with the lupine arguing why he didn't just hire them in the first place. In fact, it was extremely obvious throughout the practice sessions that Wolf was against any and all involvement with the band. The only reason he kept on going through with it was because of John.

Currently, they were preparing for their final rehearsal. Everyone was there, with the exception of John.

''Ok, are we ready?'' A black and curly-haired Mii asked. He was drumming his fingers on the side of the organ, waiting to begin,

''I think we are, Louis.'' Another Mii said, holding a guitar for rhythms.

''We have to wait for John.'' Fox said, who was sitting at the piano in front of him. On the first day of practice, he had a difficult time playing the piano. So much so, that he wanted to break it apart, key by key. Each day however, he slowly but surely got the hang of it. Right as Fox was thinking about the progress he made, John came through the door, wearing a snazzy jacket given to him by Janes.

''Finally!'' The Mii who held the guitar exclaimed.

''Oh, calm down Drake.'' Louis said, looking at the boy.

''Sorry!'' John said. The boy put his arms through the armholes as he ran on stage.

Are you ready? 'Cause when we do this for real, you have to be completely confident.'' Louis said. On the first day, John's nervousness was one the first problems to be addressed. Louis had tried his best throughout the sessions to calm the boy down. While the boy still had a confidence issue, everyone could see the difference between then and now.

''I know...I'm ready.'' John replied as stepped up to the microphone.

''Ok! Everyone ready?!'' Janes asked, who was going to watch the performance with some of his co-workers and friends. Everyone nodded in response. ''Ok John, take it away!''

''M-me?!'' John asked, shocked.

''Yeah, John, you. As the singer, you should be signaling the band to start.'' Janes explained. John gulped as he nodded.

''O-ok.'' John took a deep breath.''1...2..-'' Before he could finish counting, Louis cut him off.

''Man, that's not how you do it! You've got to say it like "a-one, a-two, a-three, go!" Louis explained. John slowly nodded as he faced forward again.

"A-one, a-two, a-three, go!'' John shouted, signaling everyone to play their part in the song at the same time. After a brief opening, John began to sing the lyrics to "Lifelight".

 _''Colors weave into a spire of flame''_

 _''Distant sparks call to a past still unnamed''_

 _''Bare this torch against the cold of the night''_

 _''Search your soul and reawaken the undying light''_

After John finished the verse, everyone stopped playing with the exception of Fox and Louis. Then the boy continued to sing.

 _''On that day, when the sky fell away''_

 _''Our world came to an end''_

 _''In our eyes stood a fading sunrise in the dark''_

 _''Glimmering shadows''_

 _That was the cue for Red and Drake to begin playing their guitars._

 _''Silence grows in the spaces between''_

 _''Stretching out beyond time''_

 _''Rising up as a chorus of souls finds a voice''_

 _''Flickering through the void''_

 _Finally, Wolf began to play his drums. Now, the whole band was playing their instruments again._

 _''These little sparks cling on to life''_

 _''Everyone caught in the struggle''_

 _''And then storms of change, they fan the flames''_

 _''Scattering ashes to the wind''_

Now the music got more intense as John kept on signing. Janes and the rest of the Miis stared at the band before them. All of them, mainly Janes, was surprised that they could pull that off in less than a week. As the song continued, they began to get into the rhythm of it.

 _''Every soul contains a whisper of light''_

 _''Gleaming faintly as it dwindles from sight''_

 _''No escape, no greater fate to be made''_

 _''In the end, the chains of time will not break''_

 _''Colors weave into a spire of flame''_

 _''Distant sparks call to a past still unnamed''_

 _''Bare this torch against the cold of the night''_

 _''Search your soul and reawaken the undying light''_

Louis and Red stopped playing, leaving only Fox, Wolf and Drake. At this point, they were all getting deep into the song, with Wolf in particular banging the drums like no tomorrow.

 _''As fate spins a thread without end''_

 _''New life draws its first breath''_

 _''Blossoming in a soil reclaimed from the past''_

 _''Where destiny holds fast''_

 _Red and Louis re-asserted themselves into the song. John kept on singing, to the best of his abilities._

 _''Here where we stand, hand clenched in hand''_

 _''Everyone caught in the struggle''_

 _''This is the day we finally find a way''_

 _''Stepping into our tomorrow''_

 _''Every soul contains a whisper of light''_

 _''Growing louder as it calls to unite''_

 _''From the distance sings a chorus of souls''_

 _''Rising slowly stirring heat from the coals''_

 _''Colors weave into a spire of flame''_

 _''Distant sparks call to a past still unnamed''_

 _''Bare this torch against the cold of the night''_

 _''Light will guide you on your way to the ultimate fight''_

The song was now nearing its climax, as it became more intense than before.

 _''Every soul contains a whisper of light''_

 _''Growing louder as it calls to unite''_

 _''From the distance sings a chorus of souls''_

 _''Rising slowly stirring heat from the coals''_

 _''Colors weave into a spire of flame''_

 _''Distant sparks call to a past still unnamed''_

 _''Bare this torch against the cold of the night''_

 _''Light will guide you on your way to the ultimate fight''_

Wolf ended the song by rapidly hitting the drums before slamming on the cymbal. Everyone in the small crowd looked on the stage with silence, before handing them a long round of applause. Janes stood up from his seat as he spoke. ''Excellent! You guys are definitely set for the are all ready for the concert tomorrow!'' As most of the staff were talking to each other, Janes approached the band.

''Great work on the song, guys.'' Janes said, praising them again.

''Well, I got to admit it was kinda nice.'' Wolf replied. Fox just smirked and snickered. The lupine overheard him, and glared directly at his rival.

''Yeah, it's pretty cool to be part of the band.'' Red said.

''Well, tomorrow's the big day. You all need to rest.'' Janes replied. Everyone agreed to that idea, and one by one, left the room to head to their hotel.

''I-I'm very nervous for tomorrow...'' John said.

''It's normal to be nervous, buy don't freak out too much.'' Fox replied, not looking at the boy.

As the four smashers exited the studio, they noticed it was dark, but none of them pointed it out.

''H-how is that going to help?'' John asked while frowning.

Fox sighed. ''We're there with you too, just so you know. Just...'' Fox was thinking of the right words to say to him. ''Just...smile and be confident. Pretty much, do what you just did, and your nervousness will just go away.''

''I-I-I guess...'' John replied.

Red, who just couldn't contain his excitement, jumped into the air with a clenched fist, similar to Mario's iconic pose. ''C'mon, let's go! Tomorrow awaits!'' Red shouted as he dashed to the hotel.

''H-how is he so full of energy?!'' John asked, shocked.

Wolf and Fox shook their head. ''Hey, Red! You might end up getting hit by a car! Be careful!'' Fox shouted as he began to chase after Red.

Wolf just shook his head in annoyance. As he walked the direction where Fox ran, he could clearly see Fox scolding Red about how he was still just a kid, and that is was his and Wolf's job to make sure nothing happens to him. Wolf stopped to watch the scene play out as he let out a chuckle. He then turned to John, and made a gesture by using his head as if saying "let's go". John slightly nodded as he followed Wolf back to the hotel.

 _ **Next Day, 7:30 P:M...**_

''Yeaaahhhhhhh!''

''Fine Brothers are the best!''

''Look! The Smashers are here too!''

The crowd was screaming and cheering in joy. Since the state of the band's health was never revealed to the public, they had no idea that Smashers we're going to actually be performing.

Lucas was watching the excitement of the crowd through the window of the luxury box. He was silent, along with the rest of the Smashers there with him. Everyone there, including him was pondering the same question. Only Ness, however, spoke up about it.

''You think those four can pull it off?'' He said.

''Maybe. I mean, they were pretty busy...'' Popo replied.

 _''I am certain they will.''_

''If you say so, Lucario.''

Just then, Janes stepped onto the stage with a microphone in hand. The roaring crowd immediately went silent and paid close attention to whatever it was he had to say.

''Citizens of Smash Town! I thank you for coming here...'' Janes said, taking a deep breath afterwards. ''I'm sorry to tell you this...but most of the band's sick, and won't be able to perform.'' Just as expected, the Miis retaliated by shouting with anger and disappointment. ''Hey, hey, calm down! Calm down!'' Every Mii listened to Janes, and the noise promptly died down. ''Now listen, just because they aren't here, doesn't mean that you won't get your money's worth! In fact, taking their place, we have some incredibly special guests that are going to rock this house! Here to play the Fine Bros new song, ''Lifelight'', I bring you….The Smashers! ''

As the group of six came out from backstage, the crowd once again began to scream in joy.

''it's the new recruit!''

''Omg! I'm totally gonna faint!''

''This is the best day ever!''

John showed a sheepish smile as he waved to the huge crowd before him. Fox followed closely behind him, placing his hand on the boy's shoulder. ''Remember what I said yesterday? Just keep on smiling, and stay confident.'' He said.

''Yeah, we're here too. So don't be nervous.'' Red followed up.

Wolf sat down at his drums, and positioned himself. If it was anybody else, people would be surprised at how much he looked like he didn't care. The lupine decided to throw in some words of encouragement, in his own way. ''Just don't freak out kid, alright?''

''T-thanks, guys, I appreciate it...'' John said as everyone else went to their positions. The crowd went silent, eagerly awaiting for the song to begin.

''May you take it away, new recruit?'' Janes asked. John just stared at him in confusion. ''I'm just being professional.'' Janes whispered into his ears before leaving the stage. John nodded in understanding as he looked at the rest of the band. They all gave nods or thumbs up in approval. The boy looked at the crowd as he took a deep breath.

''A-are you all ready?!'' John shouted. The crowd gave a huge roar in response. ''O-ok! A-one, a-two, a-one, two, three, four!''

''So, this is the famous concert?''

Out of sight from the band, and everyone else, Glitch Marth and Glitch Ness were watching with their red eyes.

''Look at these fools.'' Glitch Marth said.

''Yeah, it's making me sick just looking at it.'' Glitch Ness said.''Now, how are we supposed to get close to the kid?''

''We can certainly attack them with the element of surprise, wouldn't you think?'' Glitch Marth asked. Glitch Ness glared back up at him.

''Yeah, and then what? Don't you realize that it would be the two of us against fifteen of them?''

''But we are stronger than those fools.''

''Still, numbers matter. We need a better plan than that.''

''Then what do you propose we do instead?'' Glitch Marth asked. After a moment to think, Glitch Ness formed an evil grin as he explained his plan to his partner. Upon hearing it, he began to show a similar grin to that of Glitch Ness. ''Holding the eleven back...''

As the band was about to end their song, Glitch Ness cried out ''Let's go in now!''

Everyone was getting into the rhythm of the song, and John was getting ready to sing the final part.

''Light will guide you on your way to th-''

Suddenly, from the left of the stage, a voice shouted ''PK-Fire!''. Fire then miraculously appeared on the mic, causing John to drop it and stumble. That grabbed the attention of everyone in the audience, including the Smashers in the box. Then, out from where the fire came from, Glitch Ness and Glitch Marth emerged into view.

''Wh-what?!'' Louis shouted in shock. He, along with Drake, backed away in fear.

''Hello again.'' Glitch Ness said menacingly. He and Glitch Marth, looked at John out of everyone else.

''Y-you guys again!'' Red exclaimed. Fox picked up his hidden blaster from behind his back, and aimed at the Glitched. Red followed up by pulling out a Pokeball from his back pocket. Wolf rushed to John and grabbed the boy's arms, pulling him back to his feet.

''Stay behind me kid!'' Wolf ordered.

''What do you guys want?!'' Red asked, staring at the two Glitched.

''If you think you're gonna kidnap John, think again!'' Fox angrily said.

''Oh, I think it's you guys who should think again!'' Glitch Ness said as he raised his hands into the air. Out of nowhere, ten Glitched appeared, and surrounded the four Smashers. Everyone in the concert hall began screaming and fleeing from the scene. Louis and Drake ran to the backstage to escape. The eleven Smashers in the back began to hurry towards the stage. Out of the corner of his eye, Glitch Marth saw them, and raised his sword. The group of Smashers had to quickly stop of five larger Glitched blocked their way.

''A-ah!'' Lucas cried as he tripped, startled by the things before him. Their bodies were spherical, with their eyes on the front facing side of it. They had arms, legs, and a string at the top of the head, representing a bomb.

''PK-Thunder!'' Ness shouted, as a ball of electricity hit the Glitched. It didn't faze it in the slightest. ''PK-Fire!'' The psychic boy shouted, trying to defeat his opponent. Like the attack that came before it, it did nothing. ''Wh-what the?!''

''Hmph.'' Glitch Marth muttered as he left the stage to deal with the eleven Smashers.

The vulpine aimed at the Glitched, and was about to fire, when suddenly...

''PK-Thunder!''

''Ah!'' Fox wailed as the ball of energy came in contact with him. The shock forced him to drop his blaster.

''You think I'm gonna let you just shoot them?!'' Glitch Ness said, picking up his gun. Fox growled as he got into his fighting stance.

As one of the Glitched approached Fox, the vulpine grabbed a guitar off of the floor. ''HA!'' He cried as he smashed the Glitched with his new-found weapon. Upon striking his enemy, the guitar broke apart. ''Looks like you've got a tough skull!'' Fox said.

The four Smashers were surrounded by the Glitched. For some reason, the Glitched weren't attacking, and after Fox's strike, neither were the Smashers. Everyone involved was in battle stance, waiting for someone to make a move. ''We're in deep trouble.'' Someone said.

''Just attack!'' Wolf shouted as he charged towards one of the Glitched.

''Get them!'' Glitch Ness yelled. The group of Glitched did as they were told, and charged at the Smashers.

''Go, Charizard!'' Red shouted as he threw the Pokeball. His red dragon appeared before him. ''Go!'' Red ordered. Charizard then began to spray the enemies before him with his flames.

John was in a panic. As one of the Glitched spotted him, the boy let out a gasp. It began to approach John in a menacing fashion. The boy backed away in fear. Without his trusty blaster, the boy lacked any courage or confidence.

Wolf had already defeated two of the Glitched. As he finished his second, he turned to check on John, when he saw a Glitched was going to attack the boy.

''Kid!'' Wolf exclaimed. As John stumbled, the boy covered his face as his red bubble shield appeared.

''Charizard!'' Red called. Charizard then flew in, quickly grabbed John, and dropped him off next to Wolf. ''Good work, Charizard!'' Red said. The Pokemon gave a roar, and went back to attacking the Glitched.

''Goddammit kid, you're gonna get yourself killed!'' Wolf angrily said.''Stick close to me!'' Just then, Glitch Ness started dashing in Wolf's direction. The Glitched psychic then used his dash attack, which sent PSI-fueled sparks flying from his palms. Not expecting the attack, Wolf got hit by the PK-Rockin' attack, and was knocked back. The lupine hit the ground back first, causing a sudden thud.

''W-Wolf!'' John cried. As the seconds passed on, and Wolf still hadn't gotten up, the boy stared at him with concern. Glitch Ness took advantage of the situation, used his PSI powers to psychokinetically grab John. As the boy started to float, he started to panic. ''W-woah! W-what's going on?!''

''Maybe if you'd paid more attention, you'd realize I'm taking you with me!'' Glitch Ness said whilst giving the boy a terrifying gaze, which sent chills down his spine.

''I don't think so!'' A familiar voice chimed in.

Suddenly, a boot slammed itself directly to Glitch Ness's face. He lost focus and dropped John into the floor. The boy looked to see who his savior was, and saw Fox rushing towards him.

''Are you ok, John?'' Fox asked worriedly asked. John nodded in response. Fox glanced at Wolf, who seemed to be knocked out. Red joined with the two, and also took a look at Wolf.

''As I much as I hate him, we need to get him back on his feet.'' Fox said.

''B-but, how?!'' Red exclaimed.

''John, you try to wake him up. Me and Red will deal with the Glitched.'' Fox said. John noticed that most of them had already been defeated, and only Glitch Ness remained. He also noticed the rest of the Smashers struggling to defeat their enemies, including Glitch Marth.

''You beat up my Glitched? Why am I not surprised?'' Glitch Ness said as he was enveloped with Dark PSI. Fox and Red took a step back, creating a wall between John and Glitch Ness. ''But you won't last long against me, that's for sure!'' Glitch Ness said as he shot a strong blast with his Dark PSI.

''Gr...'' Fox growled as he and Red covered their faces from the blast. ''Stay back, John. We'll deal with him!''

''I'd like to see you try!'' Glitch Ness taunted as he charged to attack the two. The two Smashers also ran in while John watched by Wolf's side. The Dark PSI going around Glitch Ness were powerful, and it was pushing back Fox. The boy was about to step in when he heard a grunt from below him.

''Stay back kid.'' The gruff voice said. John looked down to see Wolf getting up.

''W-Wolf! Y-your ok!'' John exclaimed.

''Back up, Wolf? You're ok? You don't need to rest or anything?'' Fox said teasingly as he was fighting.

''You shut the hell up, I'm fucking fine.'' Wolf replied, annoyed.

''W-we have to help them, Wolf! What are we gonna do?'' John asked. Wolf thought about what the best course of action was for a moment, then came to a decision.

''Alright kid, look. You can hardly fight for shit, but you're at least competent with a gun.'' Wolf said as he pulled out his blaster. ''It may be a stupid idea to hand my gun to you, but it's all I got. You shoot that little shit from back here, and I'll fight him head-on. Got it?''

The boy shook his head up and down as the lupine handed his blaster over. John stared at the blade-like blaster, then back up at Wolf. ''You gonna take it or what?''

John reached out and grabbed the gun. He noticed a significant weight difference between his blaster, and the one he was currently holding. ''G-geez, it's a little heavy...''

Wolf rolled his eyes. ''Stop complaining, and start shooting!'' Wolf ordered as he ran to join the fight. John stood still and aimed the blaster at Glitch Ness. As he fired the shot, the psychic saw it coming and used PSI Magnet, which was larger and darker than Ness's.

''What the heck was that?'' Glitch Ness said as he laughed.

''Charizard, Attack!'' Red commanded.

''Huh?'' Glitch Ness said as he turned his head. Charizard instantly grabbed him without a second thought. ''W-what the?! Let me go, you oversized lizard!'' The Pokemon complied with the Glitched boy and tossed him into a pile of band equipment. The force of his body caused several pieces of equipment to fall on his head, one by one. ''Ow, ow, ow, ow!'' Glitch Ness cried with pain. After it seemed like it was finished, a large amp fell off, and also smacked into his head. ''Motherfucker!''

''Aren't you too young to swear?'' Wolf said, somewhat amused by the spectacle which just took place. Glitch Ness got up and dusted himself off.

''You can't tell me what to do, you piece of shit assholes!'' Glitch Ness cursed again. Wolf only responded by rolling his eyes.

''What a kid...''Fox muttered.

''You keep your mouth shut!'' Glitch Ness said. Suddenly, he dashed at the Smashers and used his dash attack. As expected, they dodged in time. As he slid by, John took his aim and fired a shot at Glitch Ness. The laser got impacted Glitch Ness, which caused him to get stunned by the shot. Fox ran in and quickly through a flurry of punches and kicks at the Glitched. John then rushed in, and threw Wolf's blaster at Glitch Ness's face. Out of sheer luck, Wolf caught it and fired point blank at the psychic boy before kicking him back to Fox. The vulpine used his up smash, sending Glitch Ness vertically high in the sky. To finish him off, Charizard came above his head and stomped the boy hurtling towards the ground. As dust covered the air where Glitch Ness landed, everyone simply stared at it.

''I-is it over?!'' John asked. Everyone looked at each other, than back at the dust.

''PK-Fire!'' Glitch Ness yelled as a yellow lightning bolt came out from the dust. The group dodged it, with the exception of John. The impact caused him to fall down after stumbling.

''I won't be going down that easily!'' Glitch Ness shouted as the dust cleared off. Wolf helped John up as the four got into fighting stance. Suddenly, Glitch Marth next to Glitch Ness.

''Situation changed. The Smashers are too powerful for us to deal with alone. We'll have to inform Master of this.'' Glitch Marth said as the eleven Smashers were running towards the stage.

''You heard him. It seems we won't be able to kick your butts this time. Don't worry, we'll be back.'' Glitch Ness said as a dark portal appeared. Both of the Glitched jumped through it.

''Wait!'' Fox shouted as he tried to jump into the portal. Before he could do so, it vanished without a trace. As a result, Fox landed stomach first on the ground.''Dammit! Just who are these guys?!''

''Calm a-down, Fox!'' Mario said.

''These guys mean business...'' Ness muttered.

Lucario nodded. ''True...they are quite powerful. It looks like we need to be on further alert.''

''Yeah, this concert was a wreck...'' Nana replied. She looked up, and spotted a helicopter hovering in the sky. She also noticed a camera sticking out the side of it.

''Looks like we're gonna be on TV.'' Everyone followed her gaze up to the helicopter.

''Oh, crap...'' Everyone simultaneously said, with the exception of John and Peach.

12:08 A:M

In the command room, the adults were discussing the fiasco that was the concert while footage of the news coverage was playing on the screens.

''In tonight's news, an attack happened during a concert featuring ''The Fine Brothers".'' A reporter said as the footage cut to an overhead view of the fight. ''The footage you are currently seeing depicts what appear to be dark versions of the Smashers. These same doppelgängers were reported to have been seen during the attack on the city almost two weeks ago. This news station tried to get further info on these copies, but the Smashers made no comment.'' The footage then cut again to show the Smashers exiting the concert hall.

''What exactly were you fighting in there?'' A reporter asked.

''Information is classified. Now please move.'' Fox replied.

''Is this involved with the missing Mii cases?'' The reporter asked.

''We don't know! Now move!'' Wolf said, shoving the camera away. The video ended there, and cut back to the newscaster from earlier.

''After suffering two attacks, and possible kidnappings, the question must be asked: is our city really safe?'' With that, Captain Falcon shut off the TV. Everyone sat in silence.

''This will surely cause problems...'' Master Hand said with a sigh.

''They might demand answers from us. What would you suggest we say, Master Hand?'' Marth asked. Everyone looked to the Hand for answers. ''With everything that is happening, The Mii's are in a panic. Surely there must be a way to calm them down.''

''I-I don't know! I'm not sure!'' Master Hand suddenly said. Everyone went silent again, not knowing what to say. ''Look, It's been a long night. We will discuss this tomorrow.''

''Your right. We're all tired.''Fox replied. The fifteen smashers who were involved in the fight nodded. The rest had some doubt, but didn't want to question it.

''Dismissed.'' Every Smasher got up from their seats and left the room one by one. Master Hand was only one left in the command room after a while. He simply stared at the fireplace and thought to himself.

''These Glitched are very dangerous…but there must be a way to defeat them...'' Master Hand said as he used his magic to put out the fire. The light from the room quickly vanished, causing Master Hand to be surrounded in darkness.

 **''But how?'**

* * *

 _To be continued..._

 _Featured in the next chapter..._

 _''John seriously needs a buff! He has a hard time KO-ing any of us!'' Fox said._

 _''He has strong defense in exchange for power!'' Master Hand argued._

 _''But this tournament isn't fair for him! I know what you were going for, but he lacks KO moves! His best bet is back air!'' Ness countered._

* * *

 _''Let's go over your moveset kid. I can't always be there to protect you.'' Wolf said._

 _''I-I know, but I always panic!'' John said._

 _''Then don't panic! How are you gonna survive if you can't attack!''_

 _''Hey Wolf...'' John said._

* * *

 _''Hey.'' Wolf said without looking at the boy._

 _''W-wolf...I know tha-''_

 _''What?''_

 _''N-no on trusts yo-''_

 _''Neither should you. I'm a criminal, and you know it.''_

 _''B-but I do trust you! I really do!''_

 _''Sure you do. Being frightend of me sure proves that.''_


End file.
